Andrew Farmer

Arnolfini Portrait
The first thing I notice is the contrast in color of the two peoples clothes. The woman
is wearing vivid, bright great clothes while the man is wearing all dark colors with a black
hat. The liner on the mans coat is the same color and has the same shading as the dog, which
makes me think the coat could be made out of the dogs fur; however I dont know what this
would imply. I believe this piece is a portrait of a husband and a wife welcoming a coming
child. I, at first, questioned whether the woman is pregnant or holding up a layer of her dress.
However in zooming into the mirror behind the people, there are 10 illustrations of the arrest,
suffering, and crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth. This may hint towards the portraits relation
to stages of life. This observation made me more confident that the woman is pregnant. She
is holding hands with the man in the dark clothes- with open arms, like they are welcoming
in a member into their family. There are two pairs of shoes (I believe) on the ground, perhaps
symbolizing that the presumed couple is settling in with a new child. There is also a
signature above the mirror, which may be the couple signing the house, making it their own.
I have a prediction as to why the man is wearing very dark clothing. The couples furniture
and clothing is ornately decorated; they are probably rich, or even nobility. The man may be
dressing dark clothes that symbolize death to his title or throne. With a birth of a child, the
mans inheritance or title would be passed on to the child.
After watching the video, I dont see the oil painting too differently, save the two
people in the mirror (in addition to the man and woman). I questioned if they were two
different people, but brushed it off as a reflection of light. The introduction of historical
information and records gave a much deeper meaning to the portrait. I had no clue what the
significance of the oranges were, so I didnt note them in my pre-video analysis. I now know
they were mainly eaten by people of wealth. It didnt cross my mind that the dog or the open
bed curtains (not a modern practice) meant the couple lusted for each other. The aspect I
found most interesting was the Johannes fuit hic (Latin for Johannes was here) signed
above the mirror. If this were done, I would assume it was for comedy or a pursuit of being
remembered- not a proof of witnessing a wedding ceremony. I question the theory that the
mans standing near the window symbolizes leading a life out in the world and the womans
standing near the bed symbolizes her role for reproduction. While this all makes sense, I
think it may be over-analyzing the picture. I also question this because of the theory that the
woman looking at her husband symbolizes their equality. If the painter made an effort to put
the man and the woman on an equal social level, it would not make sense to portray the
woman as only useful for making children.
All in all, the Arnolfini portrait is much more complex than it originally ap pears,
especially with the introduction of many historical documents, one saying both women the
painting could portray died childless. Without the discovery of these records, the story
behind the painting would probably be completely false. From this analysis I learned that
interpretation of art can something be meaningless- artists may have a specific idea or story
they portray in their piece. There is such a thing as being wrong in this case.