hum 111 week 8 discussion RESPONSE j.s. option a

Respond to this post in 150 words or more agreeing, disagreeing, or giving an opinion.

In reading the interpretations of both Sayre and Koster, I feel I side more with Sayre. From reading in the textbook the impression I was left with was that Sayre implied Jan Van Eyck was “transforming what is at first glance a wholly secular image into one filled with religious significance”. From the article I read about Koster it stated that Van Eyck’s paintings “need not have had either a religious inspiration or a legal cause”. I think that Van Eyck was well known for being a religious painter and therefore he would have used symbolic elements to convey religious meanings which is more what Sayre argued. One element that stood out to me was the woman’s large belly and the fact that it was stated she was likely not pregnant but had the implication that she was fertile. Another element I found interesting was the one burning candle in the chandelier which was thought to represent Christ’s presence in the room.

If I was going to have a double portrait done of myself and my husband I am not sure my symbolic elements would be so creative because I am not quite imaginative. One thing that would have to be in the picture absolutely would be something that represents my pets whether that be them literally or if we wanted to be creative then maybe a pet toy or a food bowl. A second item I would include in the photo would be something that represents sports because my husband and I watch them 24/7. I think to do this creatively we could be sitting in our living room with the television on and sports playing on the television or maybe if there was a window in the room there could be a basketball goal you see in the background outside. A third element I would include would be to have the two of us holding hands with fingers interlocked to represent our bonded love. A fourth element would be an indoor lucky bamboo plant of three stalks sitting on my coffee table in the room which symbolizes happiness, success, and longevity.