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Arts & Activities, Feb, 2005 by Guy Hubbard

ABOUT THIS SELF-PORTRAIT

This picture is thought to have been painted for the Painters' Guild of Brussels, of which Rogier van der Weyden was a member. Saint Luke was the patron saint of painters so it was natural for the guild to have such a picture. Like most works of art at this time, Rogier showed a Bible story in surroundings that everyone in 15th-century Flanders would recognize, rather than a scene of the Holy Land 2,000 years ago. The people were also dressed in 15th-century clothing.

The main figures are the Virgin Mary who is suckling the baby Jesus and Saint Luke who is making a drawing of her. Saint Luke is shown with the image of an ox, which is the badge or emblem of Saint Luke, almost hidden in shadow on the right side. The presence of the ox explained to people of the time exactly that this was Saint Luke. The cap and robes the artist is wearing would also have been recognized by viewers that this was a painting of Saint Luke.

On the left, the armrest of the Virgin's throne shows a carving of the fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. The two people looking at the distant view are thought to be to two saints, Joachim and Anne, the mother and father of the Virgin. In fact, the picture is full of symbols that would have had meaning for the people of Flanders 600 years ago, which today, we may not recognize.

Probably most important of all for this article is the face of Saint Luke. It is believed to be a good likeness of the artist, Rogier van der Weyden. He showed himself as a sober faced man, concentrating on the task of drawing the Virgin Mary. His face is slightly turned so we see both eyes in perspective, something that was not likely to happen in earlier Gothic paintings. The painting of the face is also extremely naturalistic--more so than the face of the Virgin and the infant Jesus--whose faces are like more traditional portraits that are often calm and expressionless.

The robes of the Virgin and Saint Luke are painted with a complete understanding of the way drapery falls around a persons body and they are painted in great detail, especially the decoration on the Virgin's robes. The richly decorated cloth of the canopy behind the Virgin is also painted with great mastery, even to the presence of the creases where the cloth had been folded.

Like many Flemish pictures, this one has a background that emphasizes depth and distance, and is painted in as much detail as the foreground. First is the garden with its display of flowers and then a low wall at which stand the two saintly figures. Beyond that lies a river lined with buildings and trees. These are followed by a fanciful landscape that fades into a distant countryside. While it is difficult for us to know how accurate this landscape is, parts of it at least must almost certainly have been recognizable to viewers then living in Brussels.

The composition of the painting is similar to one used by another important Flemish painter, Jan van Eyck, and gives some idea about the way different artists used each others designs in their own work. This is not something that is done today. And because this picture was successful, copies of it were made, including one that became a tapestry wall hanging.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Rogier van der Weyden was born in the town of Tournai. Six hundred years ago Tournai was in the country of Flanders but that country has since been renamed Belgium. While we don't know very much about the artist's life, we do know that he became an apprentice to the painter Robert Campin in 1427 and was received into the painters' guild in 1432. Although the normal time for an apprenticeship was four years Rogier completed it in five years.

During an apprenticeship, Rogier would have learned everything from his master about being a painter from preparing paints to helping paint finished pictures. Once he had completed his apprenticeship a young artist was free to establish his own workshop rather than continuing to work for his master.

Eventually, Rogier moved to the nearby town of Brussels where he had a large painting studio of his own with his own apprentices to help him. As his reputation grew he was appointed Town Painter for Brussels, which meant that he was given many important paintings to do.

Rogier was a very talented artist and played an important part in altering Flemish painting from stiff Gothic art toward naturalism. He probably discovered some of these new ideas when he visited Rome, Italy, where more realistic art had its beginning during the early Renaissance. Although his pictures were usually painted with oil paints, he admired the Italian frescoes that were painted with colors that were soaked into wet plaster.

Like most painters at that time, Rogier made numbers of kinds of art depending on what people wanted. Since everywhere in Europe was very religious, most of his work had religious subjects. He painted altarpieces for churches and cathedrals. He also painted pictures of important events in history, and portraits of important people. While most of his pictures were meant to hang on walls, he also painted murals that filled entire walls. He also colored statues. At that time, statues were painted, unlike today when they usually remain the natural color of stone or wood.