Film, lecture: The Mystery of Jan van Eyck April 24, 2008

As part of its mission to promote the humanities through personal exploration, The Mnemosyne Foundation will present a film, with commentary following, by noted humanities scholar Jules Cashford entitled, “The Mystery of Jan van Eyck.” The event will take place on April 24 at Rockefeller University in New York City, and is free and open to the public.

Cashford is internationally renowned for her scholarly work in mythology and symbolism. Along with Anne Barring, she is author of the critically acclaimed book, The Myth of the Goddess (Penguin). She is author of The Moon: Myth and Image (Cassell, UK; Avalon, USA) and many articles on myth and symbolism. She also translated The Homeric Hymns for Penguin Classics. Her academic background is in philosophy and literature at the Universities of St. Andrews and Cambridge where she was a Supervisor in Tragedy at Trinity College. Cashford has also lectured on mythology at Birkbeck College for Extra-Mural Studies, University of London.

The 82-min film is an expanded version of one that accompanied a 2005 exhibition of van Eyck's work in Dresden’s Kupferstich-Kabinett. The museum version was shown in a continuous loop in alternating English and German. Kingfisher Art Productions, which was commissioned to produce the original film, will re-release the new work for the Mnemosyne presentation, using advanced digital technology to further enhance its already gemlike imagery.

Accompanied by music from the 15th century when van Eyck lived, the film transports the viewer into the artist’s world through Cashford’s commentary. According to Virginia Anne Bonito, PhD, Executive Director and founder of The Mnemosyne Foundation, the unique close-up images, enhanced by projection in a cinematic format, reveal even the minutest details that are otherwise normally missed.

Dr. Bonito says this expanded vision of van Ecyk’s work provides a unique opportunity to revisit and more fully comprehend the paintings. “The detail in the film,” she says, “is beyond what a student would see in a book or on a computer screen. In addition, Jules is a scholar of myth and symbolism, and a trained Jungian analyst as well. So, when you combine the brilliance of the film with her unique scholarly perspective, viewers will appreciate van Eyck through a new lens—as the master of symbolism and technique, and as an artist truly inspired by deep spirituality with a message that has a surprising resonance for our modern world.”

The 16th century Italian historian Giorgio Vasari declared van Eyck to be the inventor of oil painting, a technique that involved the application of transparent colors in thin glazes upon a white ground, with the aim of creating a new translucence that make images appear to be lit from within. “Whether he did so single-handedly,” says Dr. Bonito, “or as part of a group of contemporaries working toward a common goal, van Ecyk stood out for his consummate ability to drive the oil medium to its highest results, and thus set the standard for artists who followed in his footsteps.”

During her commentary, Cashford will elaborate on van Eyck’s famous motto, “ALC IXH XAN,” a hybrid expression formed from 15th century Flemish with a reference to Greek, and translated, “As I can.”

“The Mystery of Jan van Eyck,” film and commentary, will be followed by a reception where the public can meet Cashford and members of the Mnemosyne Foundation.

The Mnemosyne Foundation was established in 2001 as a Web-based resource for groups and individuals to explore the treasury of knowledge we call the humanities. In the spirit of van Eyck’s famous motto, Mnemosyne works to foster experiences that encourage enlightened creativity as well as a personal commitment to honor our maximum capabilities and to function accordingly.

Official Website: http://www.mnemosynefoundation.com