Verified Document

Analysis Of Van Eyck's Madonna Term Paper

This is even so with the corners of a throw rug and some square floor tiles which peek out from the Madonna's flowing red gown.
The colors in this gown, as with the green and white embroidered
parlor headboard which looms comfortingly over the figures, represent the
most dramatic and compelling of impressions here. The gown in particular
drapes across the woman's shoulders and spills out in dominant array in the
direct center of the image. Creased and shadowed by its own fabric, the
gown seems to jump from the canvas as a lucid photograph flanked by sharply
painted objects. Among such objects, a brass chamber pot to the bottom
right of the figures does also catch the eye as a break from the symmetry.
This inclusion also reinforces the painter's persistence toward physical
and historical accuracy.
The faint cascade of light which filters through a left-bound window
cast a compelling shadow of tree branch and window pain on the wall just to
woman's upper right side. The light falls across a narrow portion of the
credenza just to her waist-side as well. The restrained use of light and
shadow here helps to reinforce the pallor of the woman and the quiet
ruefulness of the moment. Accordingly, it here that "van Eyck uses light
to create a remarkable interplay between a woman and an interior" (Haber,
1) This...

The marked proportion of the Madonna, a figure of angelic largeness, as compared to the child is important to our
interpretation of the inclusion of both. Our research argues that the work
thus "stresses the idea of human redemption, which is one reason that the
infant appears. The myth of a virgin birth turns out also to underlie that
glorious light." (Haber, 1) This is a pleasing lens through which to
consider a work that might otherwise be interpreted only in light of its
permeating sobriety. Ultimately, it helps to suggest that the pursued
realism of the works by Van Eyck and his Northern European contemporaries
could nonetheless hold the capacity for incredible and humanist poignancy.
Works Cited

Haber, J. (2007). The death of the symbol. Haber's Art Reviews. Online
at http://www.haberarts.com/vermeer1.htm>

Hughes, R. (2006). Jan van Eyck. The Complete Paintings of the Van
Eyck's.

Jolly, P.H. (1998). Jan van Eych's Italian Pilgrimage: A miraculous
Florentine Annunciation and the Ghent Alterpiece. Zeitschrift fur
Kunstgeschichte, 61(3), 369-394.

Sources used in this document:
Works Cited

Haber, J. (2007). The death of the symbol. Haber's Art Reviews. Online
at http://www.haberarts.com/vermeer1.htm>

Hughes, R. (2006). Jan van Eyck. The Complete Paintings of the Van
Eyck's.

Jolly, P.H. (1998). Jan van Eych's Italian Pilgrimage: A miraculous
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Portraiture: Van Eyck, Van Der
Words: 2910 Length: 10 Document Type: Research Paper

In this piece van der Weyden depicts the words of blessing from low to high and rightward toward Christ, and the words of damnation are high and move downward toward those that have been damned. The rise and fall of the verbal decisions of the traditional locations of those that have been blessed and those that have been cursed. The artist even went so far as to use color

Fra Filippo Lippi Annunciation
Words: 2103 Length: 8 Document Type: Essay

Fra Filippo Lippi - Annunciation (c. 1445 Wood, 175 x 183 cm San Lorenzo, Florence) Introduction Annunciation (c. 1445 Wood, 175 x 183 cm San Lorenzo, Florence) remains one of Fra Filippo Lippi’s most prominent artworks and also one of the most well-known paintings of the 1440s.  This text presents an argument to the effect that as far as the painting’s perspectival detail is concerned, the present piece remains Lippi’s most gratifying

Annunciation C 1445 Painting Fra Filippo Lippi
Words: 2081 Length: 7 Document Type: Thesis

Fra Filippo Lippi - Annunciation (c. 1445 Wood, 175 x 183 cm San Lorenzo, Florence) Introduction Annunciation (c. 1445 Wood, 175 x 183 cm San Lorenzo, Florence) remains one of Fra Filippo Lippi’s most prominent artworks and also one of the most well-known paintings of the 1440s. This text presents an argument to the effect that as far as the painting’s perspectival detail is concerned, the present piece remains Lippi’s most gratifying

Botticelli's Birth of Venus and Duccio's Maesta
Words: 1811 Length: 5 Document Type: Essay

Botticelli's Birth Of Venus And Duccio's Maesta The representation of women in Western art has changed throughout history, and for much of Western history this representation was oriented around the dominant female figure in contemporary society; that is, Mary, mother of Jesus. However, the gradual shift away from a dominantly monotheistic cultural hegemony seen in the Renaissance and eventually the Enlightenment brought with it new (and the case of this study,

Renaissance and Early Twentieth Century Art Offer
Words: 420 Length: 1 Document Type: Term Paper

Renaissance and early twentieth century art offer an interesting study in comparison because of their distinctive styles. It is the objective of this paper to describe the definitive characteristics of each period through comparing Raphael's Alba Madonna to Salvador Dali's The Persistence of Memory. Renaissance art is reputed for the unified balance achieved between pictorial considerations of measurable space and the effects of light and color on the one hand, and

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now