Why is this painting so captivating? - James Earle and Christina Bozsik

Zašto je ova slika tako zadivljujuća? - James Earle i Christina Bozsik

Prevoditelj: Irma Komljenović Recezent: Ivan Stamenković

On first glance, this painting might not seem terribly special,

Na prvi pogled, ova se slika ne čini veoma posebnom,

but it's actually one of the most analyzed paintings in the history of art.

no zapravo je jedna od najčešće analiziranih slika u povijesti umjetnosti.

It's called "Las Meninas," or "The Maids of Honor,"

Zove se "Las Meninas", ili "Male dvorske dame",

painted by Diego Velázquez in 1656,

naslikao ju je Diego Velázquez 1656.,

and it depicts a scene in the life of the Spanish Royal Court.

a prikazuje prizor iz života španjolskog kraljevskog dvora.

A well-dressed child princess refuses a glass of water from a handmaid,

Lijepo odjevena princeza odbija čašu vode od sluškinje,

while a dwarf teases a dog.

dok patuljak zafrkava psa.

A second dwarf stands next to them,

Drugi patuljak stoji pokraj njih,

while the artist himself pauses at his canvas.

dok sam umjetnik zastaje za svojim platnom.

Two more people whisper in the background,

Još dvije osobe šapću u pozadini,

while a third appears to be exiting the room,

dok se za treću čini da izlazi iz sobe;

and why wouldn't he when there seems to be so little going on?

a zašto i ne bi, kad se naizgled ništa bitno ne događa?

Even the dog looks bored.

Čak i pas izgleda kao da mu je dosadno.

But look more closely.

No, pogledaj pažljivije.

The two people reflected in the blurry mirror at the back,

Dvoje ljudi čiji je odraz u mutnom ogledalu straga,

easily missed at first glance,

lako promašeni na prvi pogled,

are none other than King Philip IV and Queen Mariana,

upravo su kralj FIlip IV. i kraljica Marijana,

koji, čini se, mijenaju scenu iz jednostavnog prikaza dvorskog života

seemingly changing the scene from a simple depiction of court life

to that of a royal portrait.

u prikaz kraljevskog portreta.

And with this piece of information,

S ovom informacijom

we can begin to understand far more about the painting

možemo razumijeti puno više o samoj slici

and why it has captivated viewers for centuries.

i zašto očarava gledatelje već stoljećima.

First, there's the historical context.

Najprije nam treba povijesni kontekst.

When "Las Meninas" was painted at the end of Philip's reign,

Kad su na kraju Filipove vladavine

"Male dvorske dame" bile naslikane

the Spanish Empire was in a period of decline,

Španjolsko je carstvo propadalo

having suffered defeat in The Thirty Years War,

zbog poraza u Tridesetogodišnjem ratu,

as well as economic and political difficulties.

te zbog ekonomskih i političkih teškoća.

The King himself had also suffered misfortune,

Sam je kralj doživio nesreću izgubivši prvu ženu i prestolonasljednika

losing both his first wife and his only heir to the throne before remarrying.

prije no što se ponovno oženio.

But the painting obscures their struggle to provide food for their household.

Sama slika zatajuje njihovu borbu da nabave hranu za svoje domaćinstvo.

Even the monarch's advanced age is concealed

Čak je i vladareva dob prikrivena

through the blurring of the mirror.

u zamagljenim zrcalima.

What we do see in the geometric center of the canvas,

Ono što vidimo u geometrijskom središtu samog platna,

brightly illuminated by the light from the window,

osvijetljenu svjetlima s prozora,

in the Infanta Margarita Teresa,

upravo je infanta Margareta Terezija,

the King's only living legitimate child at the time.

tada kraljevo jedino živuće zakonito dijete.

Her glowing and healthy appearance

Njen je sjajan i zdrav izgled

is an idealized view of the struggling empire's future.

idealiziran prikaz budućnosti carstva.

However, the Infanta is not the only center of the painting.

Ipak, infanta nije jedino središte ove slike.

Through the clever use of perspective,

Kroz vješto korištenje perspektive,

as well as painting the work life-sized, on a 10.5 x 9 foot canvas,

kao i slikanje u prirodnoj veličini, na platnu veličine 320 x 275 cm,

Velázquez blurs the boundary between art and reality,

Velázquez zamućuje granicu između umjetnosti i stvarnosti,

creating the sense of a three-dimensional picture that we can walk into.

stvara osjećaj trodimenzionalnosti, slike u koju možemo ušetati.

The line between the ceiling and the wall converges to the open door,

Linije stropa i zida susreću se na otvorenim vratima,

further creating the perception of the painting as a physical space

pa stvaraju percepciju slike kao fizičkog prostora

seen from the viewer's perspective.

gledanog iz gledateljeve perspektive.

In this sense, the audience and the real world are the focus,

U ovom su smislu publika i stvarni svijet u fokusu,

underlined by the three figures looking straight at the viewer.

samo naglašeni trima figurama koje gledaju ravno u gledatelja.

But there is still another focal point.

No postoji još jedno žarište.

The line formed by the light fixtures leads to the center of the back wall

Linija formirana zrakama svjetla vodi do središta stražnjeg zida,

to the mirror reflecting the royal couple.

do ogledala koje odražava sliku kraljevskoga para.

And its positioning relative to the viewer

Njegova pozicija u odnosu na gledatelja

has led to radically different interpretations of the entire work.

dovela je do potpuno različitih interpretacija cijelog djela.

The mirror could be reflecting the King and Queen posing for their portrait,

Ogledalo bi moglo odražavati kralja i kraljicu kako poziraju za svoj portret,

or is it reflecting the canvas?

ili odražava platno?

And what do we make of the fact

O čemu se onda radi,

that Velázquez never painted the royal portrait implied here?

ako znamo da Velázquez nikada nije naslikao takav kraljevski portret?

Could the painting actually be depicting its own creation instead?

Prikazuje li slika svoje vlastito nastajanje?

With the incorporation of the mirror into his work,

Uključivši ogledalo u svoj rad,

Velázquez elevated the art of painting

Velázquez uzdiže percepciju slikanja

from its perception as a simple craft

sa jednostavne vještine,

to an intellectual endeavor.

na intelektualni pokušaj.

With its three competing center points,

Sa svoje tri središnje točke,

"Las Meninas" captures the contrast between the ideal,

koje se međusobno natječu,

"Male dvorske dame" hvataju kontrast idealnog,

the real,

stvarnog,

and the reflected worlds,

i reflektiranih svjetova,

maintaining an unresolved tension between them to tell a more complex story

pritom sačuvavši nerazriješena naprezanja među njima da ispričaju priču

than any mirror can provide.

previše složenu da ju jedno zrcalo pruži.