El Greco the Assumption of the Virgin

El Greco

The Assumption of the Virgin

The Assumption of the Virgin is a work of art depicting the Virgin as she ascends to heaven, surrounded by the apostles. The underlying theme of The Assumption of the Virgin is religious as it depicts the assumption of the Virgin, which, to faithful Catholics of El Greco's time was not simply a spiritual or religious theme, but also a historical event. The symbolism used reaffirms the religious aspects of the painting. The apostles are shown, bending to the Virgin in reverence, and angels are shown waiting in heaven for the Virgin.

The work is narrative, because it shows an event and tells the story of that event. The story depicted in the painting was a familiar one to Catholics of El Greco's time, just as it is familiar to Catholics of today. Therefore, it is difficult to separate what story the painting is telling from the story of the Virgin's assumption. Looking solely at The Assumption of the Virgin, it is clearly telling the story of a woman who died, who released from her tomb, and who rose to heaven. In addition, it is clear that the woman was revered because of the looks of adoration and awe on the faces of the men surrounding her and the looks of welcome on the faces of the angels awaiting her in heaven.

Looking at The Assumption of the Virgin, one is almost compelled towards a feeling of peace. The first thing one notices when looking at the color scheme used by El Greco in The Assumption of the Virgin is that the colors used are those found in nature; people are colored like people, a tomb like a tomb, and so forth. The second thing one notices is that, one top of the natural-colors, there is a silvery wash, as if light is coming down from heaven. This silvery wash serves to further unify the colors. The silvery wash also lends an intensity to the colors that is not usually found in naturalistic paintings. The overall effect of the colors used is to portray a heavenly event being witnessed by ordinary people.

The directional lines emphasize the idea of the heavenly. At first, one might be tempted to say that The Assumption of the Virgin is vertically orientated, but that would be misleading because the work is not up and down: The Assumption of the Virgin is straight up. Not only is the Virgin ascending to heaven, but the Apostles are also portrayed with their arms extended heavenward. Furthermore, even in heaven, the Virgin and the angels are depicted with raised arms. One sees the clear upward lines from either group of the Apostles, leading towards the Virgin. The effect is exactly what was desired: the painting depicts elevation, exaltation, holiness.

One of the most striking features of The Assumption of the Virgin is El Greco's use of light to portray holiness. A light shines down from heaven, and at first one might believe it is the depiction of the sun, except that the Virgin is above the crescent moon. Instead, the light depicts the shine of heaven. There is an additional source of light from the left side of the painting, and those Apostles in the front left of the painting are depicted in its glow, standing. In contrast, the Apostles on the right are in shadow, either bending towards the ground or with their heads bent toward the ground. Light is used to convey, not just a sense of holiness, but also a sense of royalty. The Virgin is the enlightened queen; the Apostles are her subjects. Only by her assumption into heaven can the Apostles be illuminated.

El Greco's use of shape is important in telling the story of the assumption. The shapes are organic, as they depict humans and human-shaped angels. Although the tomb is geometrically shaped, is not a central element of the painting. In fact, the man-made tomb is depicted as a contrast to the realm of heaven, where there are no man-made limitations. In fact, not only are the shapes organic, but El Greco's depiction of the Virgin is ultra-organic. Those attributes that make her womanly, in fact, that make her religiously and/or historically significant are those that are emphasized in the painting. Her hips and thighs, those aspects that enabled her to give birth, are emphasized; in fact, they are the broadest part of the painting.

Likewise, the use of space is also essential the telling of the story. At first, looking at the painting, the Virgin appears larger. While a larger figure in the foreground a painting typically indicates that the figure is closer to the observer that is not the feeling that one gets when observing The Assumption of the Virgin. Instead, one gets the feeling that the Virgin is larger because of the fact that she is larger than life, not because she is closer to the observer than the Apostles. However, that same use of space clearly shows that the Virgin is closer to the observer than the angels are. One interesting thing about the use of space in The Assumption of the Virgin is that it is difficult to determine whether the work has an open or closed form. On the one hand, the people and objects depicted in the painting are clearly defined and separated from one another, giving the first impression of a closed form. However, as a whole, the work appears open. It does not appear that the painting is actually limited by the edges of the canvas, and the viewer is invited into the painting.

There is some use of the texture in the painting, which is implied. It is clear to the observer that the tomb is flat and inorganic-feeling. In contrast, the people are swathed in texture. Looking at The Assumption of the Virgin, one gets the feeling that the could touch the stiff hairs in the Apostles' beards, feel the soft folds of the Virgin's dress, or the fluffiness of the clouds.

While the story of the assumption tells the story of an event in time, The Assumption of the Virgin simply depicts a snapshot in that story. Although there is a clear sense that something has happened before the painting and will continue after the painting, there is no actual passage of time depicted in the painting. Although the painting is frozen-in-time, it does depict motion. Clearly, the Virgin is depicted as rising from earth to heaven. The elevated arms of the Virgin and the Apostles reaffirm the idea of upward motion. In addition, El Greco uses contrast of color to depict motions. Although from the same palette, the colors used in heaven and earth are distinct enough from each other to give the impression of two separate realms. It is almost as if the angels are covered in clouds. Because the Virgin is bridging the gap between two realms, it is clear that movement is depicted in the painting. Furthermore, El Greco's use of space demonstrates motion. The Virgin is clearly moving vertically, and the idea that she has moved is emphasized by the fact that the perspective demonstrates that she is at the same distance from the viewer as the Apostles, but far closer than the angels.