Have you seen...yourself reflected?

Jan Van Eyck, The Arnolfini Portrait, 1434

What strikes you first: the green gown, the fluffy dog, the abandoned clogs, the rolling oranges, the brass chandelier, the writing on the wall or the convex mirror?

There is so much going on here that one can just look and look.  The figures of course, dominate the scene, particularly the lady with her vivid green gown edged with white fur and an elaborately decorated sleeve.  She holds the front of her dress in front of her stomach, possibly emphasising her pregnancy.  However, a distended stomach was regarded as a beautiful asset in the fifteenth century [1] and Van Eyck painted another female figure, St Catherine in a similar way (below).

                                    

Giovanna Cenami, the lady probably represented here [2] may not, therefore, be pregnant at all, simply fashionably rotund. Holding her hand, Giovanna’s husband, Giovanni Arnolfini wears a luxurious brown cloak edged with fur and raises his hand in an odd gesture of almost Pope-like blessing.  Could he be making an oath or simply greeting guests?

There is some debate as to what is going on here.  Does it show an actual wedding taking place or simply a celebration of one at a later date? [3] It has been pointed out that a dog is a symbol of fidelity and faithfulness in marriage [4] and also that the bed in the background could symbolise the marriage bed [5].  It has also been argued that both the handclasp and the raised hand gesture were part of medieval and contemporary marriage ceremonies [6].  The view that this painting shows a marriage and contains disguised symbolism has, however, been discounted as being untenable, and another opinion put forward, suggesting that the double portrait could be part of a dynastic series, like an illustrated genealogy [7]. 

However, there are often layers of meaning in Renaissance art and I would like to suggest a possible new reading for this image: We could have here a representation of the Arnolfinis as Mary and Joseph.  Mary stands, already divinely pregnant with the Son of God whilst Joseph, who has been told the news in a dream, has, at this very moment, taken Mary home to be his wife [8]. He stands with one hand raised and the other holding her hand, affirming his betrothal to Mary. 

There are various other points within the painting which, I believe, add credence to this interpretation.  Firstly, the carved frame of the mirror consists of ten scenes from Christ’s passion, the uppermost roundel depicting his crucifixion.  Next to the frame hangs a rope of rosary beads, an item linked with the Virgin Mary [9].  Above the mirror, the chandelier bears one lit candle, a traditional and Biblical symbol [10] used both to represent Jesus as the light of the world and the truth about him that should not be hidden [11].  The dog of fidelity, could here perhaps, point to the faith of Mary in her unborn child as Saviour of the world, as promised by the angel Gabriel [12]. Finally, adorning a piece of furniture against the back wall is a carved figure of St Margaret with a dragon.  St Margaret is the patron saint of women in childbirth [13] and her position in the painting near Giovanna’s head, suggests a link with Giovanna being represented as the pregnant Virgin Mary. All these elements, I would argue, point to a layered and sacred meaning for this work.

detail of the Arnolfini Portrait showing the mirror and reflected figures

Whatever the meaning of the painting, the thing that fascinates me the most, is the mirror.  It is a convex mirror showing a fish eye view of the room.  We see the backs of Giovanni and Giovanna but we also see what they see: two figures standing in a doorway and looking into the room.  If this was a wedding these figures could be their witnesses.  Others have proposed that one of the people could be Van Eyck himself, the witty inscription above the mirror, “Van Eyck was here, 1434” being evidence for this [14]. Who then is the other person? Who do the Arnolfinis see? There is a pattern of looking: the viewer is also the viewed.  Thus, when I look at this picture and into the mirror on the wall, I see myself, reflected.

Go and see yourself reflected in Van Eyck’s masterpiece, currently in an exhibition in the Sainsbury Wing of the National Gallery.

Alison Barker

Coming next: 

Have you seen...the 'unacceptable' Last Supper?

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[1] Dunkerton et al, Giotto to Durer, Early Renaissance Painting in the National Gallery, 1991, National Gallery Publications Ltd, London, p.259

[2] Ibid p.258

[3] Dunkerton et al, 1991, p.260

[4] Ferguson G, Signs & Symbols in Christian Art, Oxford University Press, London, 1961, p.15

[5] Murray P, Murray L, The Art of the Renaissance, Thames & Hudson, London, 1997, p.82

[6] Jan Baptist Bedaux, ‘The Reality of Symbols: The Question of Disguised Symbolism in Jan Van Eyck’s Arnolfini Portrait’, Simiolus: Netherlands Quarterly for the History of Art, vol.16, no.1, (1986), pp.5-28

[7] Campbell et al, Renaissance Faces: Van Eyck to Titian, 2008, National Gallery Company, London, p.182

[8] The Bible, Matthew 1:20-25

[9] Ferguson, 1961, p.168

[10] Ibid p.162

[11] The Bible, John 1: 3-9

[12] The Bible, Matthew 1:21

[13] Ferguson, 1961, p.131

[14] Dunkerton et al, 1991, p.260