256 pages, Vintage Books, ISBN-13: 978-0099526896
Girl in a Green Gown: The History and Mystery of the Arnolfini Portrait was the last work by the British art historian Carola Hicks (indeed, it was published posthumously) and concerns one of the most popular and enigmatic paintings of its time. Painted in 1434 by Flemish artist Jan van Eyck in oils rather than tempera – and measuring a mere 3’ tall – the Arnolfini Portrait is regarded as the first work of art which simultaneously celebrates both middle-class comfort and monogamous marriage, although the subjects of the portrait are in dispute; it is assumed that it shows Giovanni Arnolfini and his probably pregnant wife at their home in Bruges.
What Hicks has written is a kind of double-portrait of this most enigmatic of works: numbered chapters that trace the provenance through the centuries are interspersed with non-numbered chapters that detail the painting itself and all of the hidden meanings of the same. She explores not only who owned this painting and where it travelled, but also all of the hidden details and meanings that may be found dispersed throughout the whole, often hidden in plain sight (unless you didn’t know what you were looking at). Overall, through her vivid descriptions and apt writing, it is obvious why Hicks was such a popular and well-regarded historian.
I like art as much as the next fella but can’t honestly say that I could tell Alla prima from Underpainting. But with Hicks you don’t need to; everything is described in clear language and a detail that doesn’t get bogged down in academic jargon. She “shows” you this detail or that, walks you through its significance and wraps it up with its importance, when she isn’t tracing the history of its owners and place in the world. While doing so, the reason for the importance of this seemingly minor work of art becomes evident to even the most cretinous Cretan. A rare double-feat and more evidence of why Carola Hicks will be missed.
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