The renaissance bought a new attitude to art. Paintings were
now more lifelike and elaborate – the portraits were like graphic novels using symbolism
to tell a story about the sitter. In The Armada portrait of the queen, (1558) Elizabeth
has her hand resting on the globe and her fingers are touching South America.
This symbolises her ambitions of moving into south America because it
was the best source for Spanish gold. The crown in the background is a symbol
of royalty and wealth. The two paintings in the background are of the Spanish armada,
owning fine art was a sign of wealth. Aside from her beautiful and very
expensive looking gown, she is completely covered in pearls as these were a
sign of purity- she would have chose to have done this to uphold the image of ‘the
virgin queen’.
The rainbow portrait
This portrait of queen Elizabeth was done around 1600. The tudor
rose refers to the tudor dynasty and has religious connotations to the virgin
mary, while the rainbow symbolises peace. The serpent embroidered on her sleeve
symbolises wisdom and shows that her heart is led by wisdom.
Pelican portrait
A pelican is a symbol of sacrifice- mother pelicans were thought
to have plucked their own feathers to protect their babies in the cold. This is
a symbol of Elizabeth’s motherly love and dedication towards her nation. She is wearing red in
the portrait and red was extremely hard to get hold of, therefore this is a
symbol of importance and wealth. There are two cherries behind her ear to
symbolise that she is still a virgin ‘her cherry hasn’t been popped’ this is a
symbol of her dedication and sacrifice. Again, in this piece she is draped in
pearls to represent her purity.
These days, we use far less subtle when it comes to
portraying wealth or importance in an image. Instead of using small objects or
symbols, we use expensive clothes, jewellery, fast cars and locations as status
symbols.
Here is a picture I found of Kim and Kourtney Kardashian-
there is nothing subtle about the wealth in this picture at all. They are
climbing into their very own private helicopter (which has their initials
engraved into it). Obviously, owning a helicopter symbolises wealth. They are
draped over the helicopter wearing designer gowns and plenty of bling to portray their wealth. This was actually a promo for their reality TV show-by using wealth and lavish lifestyle as the main theme for this ad, it shows how obsessed people are with wealthiness.
Today, celebrities use their power with social media and technology to share their wealth with the world. For example, when Kim Kardashian 'broke the internet' with that picture of her posing naked with a champagne bottle, just because she could. I am not saying that Kim is a modern day Elizabeth, she is not respected in the same way- however, people do aspire to look like her and love to follow her lavish lifestyle, whether they like to admit it or not.
Today, celebrities use their power with social media and technology to share their wealth with the world. For example, when Kim Kardashian 'broke the internet' with that picture of her posing naked with a champagne bottle, just because she could. I am not saying that Kim is a modern day Elizabeth, she is not respected in the same way- however, people do aspire to look like her and love to follow her lavish lifestyle, whether they like to admit it or not.
pictures: http://favim.com/image/259817/
http://www.marileecody.com/eliz1-images.html
http://www.naergilien.info/my-costumes/elizabethan/pelican-gown/
http://www.marileecody.com/eliz1-images.html
http://www.naergilien.info/my-costumes/elizabethan/pelican-gown/
sources: Information from sharon's lesson
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