An Analysis Of The Crucifixion By Jan Van Eyck

Standing alone in a case in the middle of an upper level gallery room, one will find a humbly sized diptych, which vibrantly grabs the attention of anyone who passes it. To a knowing viewer, it becomes almost immediately evident that this is the work of none other than Jan van Eyck himself. This piece juxtaposes two biblical scenes commonly depicted by Renaissance artists, but with a Netherlandish attention to detail, as well as other formal elements endemic to van Eyck’s style. These components include an emphasis on highly saturated colors, a strong use of spatial elements, and highly realistic physical renderings of the subjects depicted.
In order to be able to aptly formally analyze this particular work, one must first be familiarized with …show more content…
All the figures pictured occupy space and have weight. As the piece moves backward toward where Christ is nailed to the cross, there is a definite recession of space. Van Eyck uses this receding background to denote depth, and it is only further enhanced by the intricately detailed, by tiny buildings in the back, and the atmospheric perspective employed on the even further receding landscape. The distraught bodies of the Mary’s engage the viewer’s interest in the foreground. As one looks at The Crucifixion’s contrasting piece, The Last Judgment, this occupation of natural space is seemingly lost. There is a hierarchical scale implemented (with the returned Christ as the largest figure, followed by John the Baptist and the Virgin Mary), which negates the naturalistic perspectives van Eyck used in the previous panel. This is not without good reason though, because it allows the viewer to transcend into the third dimension, from earthly to heavenly and vice versa. This is not a natural sense of depth, but the deep tones in the hellish underworld certainly create the illusion that one is going deeper into the earth vertically. There is a larger play on light in this composition, where the heavenly realm is saturated in lighter tones (the glow of the halos, the stark whiteness of the habits of the apostles), the earthly realm is ablaze with the remaining humans who are falling through to the hellish realm which is almost exclusively bathed in dark muted tones. As far as repetition or geometric patterns present in either composition, The Last Judgment has the a slight element of repetition, in both the overlapping congregated bodies of the saved, and of the crowded, mangled bodies of the damned. All of the previously mentioned formal elements work together to create two juxtaposed, but cohesive