Textual Poaching

My Covenant Obsession by Brandon Ostler

Artist Statement

Above is a remixed painting by Jan Van Eyck (1434).  The original is titled “Arnolfini Wedding.”  Today, many people hire photographers to take engagement photos or to document the wedding.  Take the official wedding photos of Prince William and Kate Middleton released by the Clarence House for example.  They may not be the most telling of photos about their relationship but it is a symbol of their covenant and a memento to look back to.  This is a similar concept carried out hundreds of years ago, in the “Arnolfini Wedding,” being a symbol of their commitment and the aspects relating to that commitment which I will explain as we go on. 

I identity with this painting for one specific reason.  As I thought about the characteristic of myself that I would like to have portrayed in the media and hence remembered by is my commitment to family and the betterment of families.  It is really only the one thing I can say I am really passionate about.  I have played college football, am on the BYU Ballroom Dance Company, broadcast live sports, am a published poet, a certified foodhandler, and a filmmaker, all of these are just things that I just enjoy doing but am not obsessed with any one of them.  Through my observations and studies though, I have seen that this world is a mess and it is such because of failure in the home.  Real talk.  I am not yet married, but I am a Family Life Minor and am trying to prepare to raise my family the best way possible.  In order to do so, I must find a career path.  I figure though, that if I am going to be spending so much time each day on something to provide for my family, I might as well help other families with that time.  This is where film making comes in, as it has the potential to inspire and show fathers, mothers, and children alike, how to make their lives better.  Anyways, I could talk about the importance of family all day and in the end it would conclude with a focus on understanding and reverencing the marriage covenant and your expectations therein, a lesson which, through symbols, is taught in the “Arnolfini Wedding.” 

Not only is the painting a reminder of the covenant that day but there are many symbols in the painting that show us what that covenant is.  First, you will find two pairs of shoes on the ground, a random dog, a mirror in the background, a signature on the wall under the mirror, oranges, an elaborate chandelier with only one candle burning, a hand broom, and significant body language being shown in the hands.  The shoes show that this covenant is being made on holy ground.  Her hand is submissive to the husband and the husbands to the officiator.  These have great significance and ties with Adam and Eve.  The mirror shows the reflection of two persons in the doorway which are witnesses.  Around the mirror are little snapshots from the Atonement and Resurrection of Christ. The signature on the wall is proof of the marriage witnessed by Van Eyck.  The oranges show fertility; the broom, domestic work.   The dog symbolizes loyalty and the chandelier with one candle is directly over top the couple symbolizing God and a concept that is taught in the Mormondom of the triangle between God and the couple that is getting married because all are part of the covenant.  It is amazing what truths were known during that time.  This whole paragraph shows the symbols that I also believe should be ever present to remind us of the importance of marriage.  This is why I put my face in the picture; like Marcel Duchamp’s “L.H.O.O.Q” making a famous interpreted painting my own.  I want to show my desire to be that man making the covenants and showing that I will accept all of these symbols.  I have a childish look on my face though because I am still extremely single and not yet to that point of marriage yet.

Now, this leaves us to determine if this representation of marriage and family that I got form Jan Van Eyck is also what the rest of media is showing about these things.  I come back to the pictures of Prince William and Kate Middleton.  I find that they are beautiful pictures but they are mainly done just out of tradition and for a memory of that special day.  As with most portrayals of marriage in the media today, it fails to remind us of the specifics of the covenants made that day.  With lavish parties and gift giving, it just adds to the confusion of why people get married; becoming a mere tradition and a step in life that honorable people should take.  This representation in the media makes it hard for me to be who I am showing I am in the Van Eyck remix.  People look at me strangely or chuckle when I tell them about my passions for strengthening marriage and family or tell them about something I learned from a marriage class.  There should definitely be more art made to show the why of everyday archetypal processes like marriage.  Maybe continuously seeing these symbols of the why will help change our perspectives that media has skewed.