MEDIEVAL ART

“The Ghent Altarpiece”By Jan Van Eyck C. 1432Oil on Wood

Questions to Ask

What are some figures that you might have been able to identify from the panels?

What are some religious symbols that you can indentify from the picture?

Look at the different groups of people that are included on the four bottom panels. Who do you think they represent?

What colors does the artist predominantly use? And how do these colors affect the overall painting?

What is the significance behind a painting such as this being placed inside a church?

Why this painting is helpful

This piece of art would be very influential because it represents the idea that religion at the time brought together many different kinds of people who are seen as emerging from all sides to take part in the church rituals and partake of its blessing. It is the idea that religion became a haven for people of the time away from all the warfare and terror that they faced in their everyday lives. Another reason why it is a good tool is that it holds many symbolic elements all of which represent the Christian faith and the power of the Holy Roman Empire in its rapid expansion and strength.