Early Netherlandish Painting (Erwin Panofsky)
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Early Netherlandish Painting (1953) is a work by Erwin Panofsky.
Panofsky became particularly well-known for his studies of symbols and iconography within works of art. First in a 1934 article, then in his Early Netherlandish Painting, Panofsky is the first to interpret Jan van Eyck's Arnolfini Portrait (London, National Gallery) as not only a depiction of a wedding ceremony, but also a visual contract testifying to the act of marriage. Panofsky identifies a plethora of hidden symbols that all point to the sacrament of marriage. In recent years, this conclusion has been challenged. And yet, Panofsky's work with what he called "hidden" or "disguised" symbolism are still very much influential in the study and understanding of Northern Renaissance Art.
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