Everything you need to know about the most mysterious painting : The Arnolfini Marriage

"The Arnolfini Marriage" is an oil painting on oak produced by Netherlandish painter Jan van Eyck in 1434. The painting is a small full-length double portrait, which is believed to represent the Italian merchant Giovanni di Nicolao Arnolfini and possibly his wife Giovanna Cenami. Portraits are, fundamentally, pictures of people. Portraiture dates back to ancient civilizations, but it emerged as an important discipline in its own right during the Renaissance. The Arnolfini Portrait by Netherlandish painter Jan Van Eyck is one of the most complicated of all portraits, it depicts two individuals and is considered as a group portraiture. This three-quarter view would have been considered more effective than a frontal or profile view in showing their physical volume. Two figures are presumably in their home in the Flemish city of Bruges, the leading center of trade in northern Europe. It was painted when the commissioned art was a norm, and usually, only people with great wealth and high status could afford to hire and pay for the creation of the certain piece of artwork. "The Arnolfini Marriage" is considered one of the most original and complex paintings in art because of its iconography. Van Eyck used a lot of visual images and symbols to explicate variety of ideas. The painting also breaks many stereotypes of Renaissance period. The canvas was bought by the National Gallery in London in 1842.

At first glance, it seems fairly innocent dual-portrait where two people stand in a room, looking like a bedroom. The clothing gives serves as a sign to say that the couple in Van Eyck’s painting is undoubtedly rich. Van Eyck used the technique of applying the layer after layer of thin glazes to create a painting with an intensity of tone and color. The painting also highlights the realism and shows the material wealth and opulence of Arnolfini's world. The bottom folds of a woman’s outer garment could have only been arranged so skillfully with the help of a maid. Plus, it would have needed another person to carry it. To walk in such a dress presupposed a practice normally acquired only in aristocratic circles. The dress is fashionable, and she is up to date. The Arnolfini Portrait provides a clear pictorial record of the rank and social status of the subjects. The woman's robe is trimmed with ermine fur and consists of an inordinate amount of fabric. Whether the extra material gathered against the woman’s stomach indicates that Mrs. Arnolfini is or is not pregnant seems to have been one of the painting’s most alluring features: it’s the first in a sequence of puzzles for the viewer. Some think this is just another way of exhibiting how much material is on her. The gown aids the balance of colors in the painting. However, we don’t know how often she would have been able to wear such luxurious clothing.

The man is dressed in a plaited straw cap and a velvet cloak, lined with fur. It seems comfortable, allowing him movement and activity. These clothes place the couple among the wealthy citizens of Bruges, though not yet in the top rank. The wooden clogs, worn to protect against street dirt, in front of him with a somewhat restricted size of the chamber and the absence of ostentatious gold jewelry indicate the fact that the man does not belong to the aristocracy. The differentiation between two wooden objects: sandals and floor, is depicted in a highly professional way.

Nonetheless, the stained glass window, chandelier, ornate mirror and oriental carpet, as well as the groom's well-manicured hands and the expensive oranges on the side dresser, are visible indicators of significant wealth.

Van Eyck gives no indication of the identity of the people, neither on the panel nor in any other document. It was only after 100 years that it was described as “A large panel painting, Herault le fin with his wife in the room”. The name of a man is a French version of the Italian surname Arnolfini, Giovanni Arnolfini- who is believed to belong to the family of merchants and bankers. The foreign businessman was living in Bruges aristocratic luxury. He owned Oriental carpets, which are relatively rare and must have been imported from Turkey, chandelier, and mirrors. He could even afford expensive oranges, the rare delicacy which is said to have represented love and marriage and also innocence before Adam and Eve’s expulsion. The facial expression of Arnolfini appears cold and sophisticated. With his pale face, which is shrouded in the darkness, he somehow resembles what “death” is traditionally depicted as. Mr. Arnolfini’s direct gaze confronts the viewer while his wife passively and obediently at her husband. Arnolfini has a large sense of individuality and authority, above not only the viewers of the picture and his fellow merchants but above his wife as well, which is signaled by his emphatically raised hand.
She stands away from the window and adjacent to the bed, in keeping with her “feminine” role as a housewife. Mr. Arnolfini, bathed in a natural light, is closer to the outside sphere, symbolic of his active role in the commercial world.

There’s a lot of debate whether what painting is depicting: if it’s a betrothal, a portrait of an already married couple, where husband gives authority to the wife about a wealth, with a paper declaration or If it’s a funeral. Some believe it has no significant meaning at all. Various versions have been proposed by different art historians but aiming to a correct answer is pointless as Van Eyck left no evidence except the masterpiece to analyze the event. A question has haunted many art histories for many years, why the picture was produced. For many years, the painting was thought to be a wedding portrait, of a couple taking vows. Looking at the picture, we can find evidence to support the interpretation. The artist’s rather florid statement on the back wall supports the suggestion that it was painted as a legal document recording a marriage. It is Latin equivalent of “Jan Van Eyck was here” This is a testimony not only to the matrimonial act which may have been documented in the painting but also to the changing status of the artist towards the middle of the fifteenth century. The Early Renaissance period witnessed the growing status of the artist and biographies were a response to this new interest in them as individuals. Giorgio Vasari’s Lives of the Artists, in particular, helped to turn artists-previously considered society only as skilled artisans- into something more like modern celebrities when it was published in 1550. The emergence of the academy as the new form of institution encouraged a new conception of the artist as a learned individual who had made a serious study of his are. An essential component of what defines the Renaissance is “Humanism” which began as a literary movement in Italy during the 14th century. It was the philosophical backbone of the Renaissance, emphasizing the potential for individual achievement and stipulating that humans were rational beings capable of truth and goodness Due to a more materialistic view of the world, Civic Humanists and Renaissance scholars were more interested in worldly or secular subjects rather than in religious themes. Throughout a predominant period of Civic Humanism, merchants looked for a new set of values, focusing on the individual in society. With the introduction of Humanism, people became more secure in the knowledge that they are providing themselves with a better quality of life whilst following the teachings of Christ. Here, Jan Van Eyck’s self-publishing “graffito”, coupled with artist’s reflected image in the mirror, marks a more general move towards the recognition of artists in their own right. The convex mirror on the center of the rear wall is exquisitely decorated with miniature medallions illustrating the Crucifixion and other stories from the Passion of Christ reveals more details of the room. Two visitors standing in the open doorway are visible behind the viewer, as is another window along with the wooden beams of the ceiling. The formality of the pose is also illustrated by the man's raised hand - suggesting he is taking an oath - as well as the arranged robe of the woman. In line with the mirror, in the center of the picture, we see the couple holding hands: at least the man rather formally holds the limp hand of his wife in the palm of his own.

Arnolfini does not take his wife's hand in his right hand but in his left. This appears to symbolize what was called a "left-handed marriage" - a union of unequal, in which the woman was obliged to forfeit all the usual rights of property and inheritance. Some scholars argue that if this painting does show a marriage ceremony, then the use of the left-hand points to the marriage being morganatic and not clandestine. A marriage is said to be morganatic if a man marries a woman of unequal rank. A procedure not unlike that of a modern day morganatic marriage entered into by a European royal Prince and a commoner. Thus it is probable that the two witnesses are present to validate the financial contract drawn up at the time of such a marriage. But they were not necessary for the marriage ceremony itself: in 15th century Bruges, neither priest nor witnesses were needed. A couple could marry them selves, and then confirm the arrangement by attending communion together, the next morning. This is also partially confirmed by an ornate chandler, hanging right above the couple’s head; there is no obvious reason just one candle should be burning in solitude. We could link it with a popular medieval tradition, where the large candle was carried at the head of the wedding process, as it symbolizes the ubiquitous Christ whose invisible presence is witness to the marriage vows. Of course, if the couple is, in fact, Giovanni di Nicolao Arnolfini and his wife Giovanna Cenami, there is no question of it being a marriage between unequals, as Giovanna was equally well connected. But in 1997 it was established that their marriage did not take place until 1447 - some thirteen years after the date of the painting, and six years after Jan Van Eyck's death. However, his brother Michele appears to have made such a marriage in Bruges, around the time of the painting. Other art historians think the painting might represent the wedding of Giovanni di Nicolao Arnolfini and his first wife Costanza Trenta. To ensure a successful marriage, a dog in included at the couple's feet. This is a symbolic reference to faithfulness. The dog, whose two-tone hair is painted with such a high degree of verisimilitude, is commonly understood to represent loyalty and provides a fitting comparison with his counter-symbol, the cat.

The woman in the picture is not pregnant: her bulge merely illustrates the contemporary fashion for voluminous robes. Fertility is however alluded to by the wooden carving on the back of a chair, visible underneath the chandelier. The chair on the back is carved in the image of Saint Margaret, a patron of childbirth and fertility, signaling a wish for a healthy family.

Jan Van Eyck did not invent oil painting, although he can be credited with mastering its blend and application. The artist painted a double portrait on an oak panel- as was popular in Netherlands- and its surface was treated with warm animal-skin glue and a chalk ground primer to provide a smooth surface and hide the wood grain. Jan Van Eyck used the technique of glazing. When light travels through the transparent glaze and bounces back off the opaque layer it produces brilliance and a glow unachievable in tempera painting. It depicts patron’s status so convincingly because the slow-drying medium of oil has allowed the artist to depict a catalog of perfectly modeled material objects in meticulous detail. The medium of oil paint also permitted van Eyck to capture surface appearance and distinguish textures precisely. He also rendered the effects of both direct and diffuse light by showing the light from the window on the left reflected by various surfaces. It has been suggested that he used a magnifying glass in order to paint the minute details such as the individual highlights on each of the amber beads hanging beside the mirror. They were often given as given as gifts when people got engaged. Textures so believable that our disbelief is suspended upon sight of every object. The thick pile of the rug on the floor is easily distinguished from Mr. Arnolfini fur-trimmed coat. Oil allows for smooth transitions in color and tone, such as in Mrs. Arnolfini’s green gown. Artist used a small brush and painstakingly blended the medium in order to disguise his brush marks ( unachievable in tempera). Van Eyck used the finest pigments to display the couple’s status. Mrs. Arnolfini’s sleeves are painted in lapis lazuli, her verdigris gown from ground copper and the rich red of the interior drapery from a mixture of silver and sulfur.