Monday 14 October 2013

Symbolism in paintings

I looked at a variety of paintings from a range of eras for my inspiration, mainly to compare styles and how things changed over the centuries. For an example of really early painting, there is the very well known 'Arnolfini Portrait' by Jan van Eyck. I like this painting simply from a visual sense, but there is also all the objects strewn about, from the oranges symbolising purity, the dog for loyalty, the green of the dress for hope. 


Of more interest to me however, were these 18th C still life paintings, as they are beautiful on face value, but they also have so much hidden meaning, such as the tipped over glass representing the transcience of life, or feathers meaning freedom.



No comments:

Post a Comment