Diego Velazquez- The Spinners

We pointed out a lot of the significance Monday in class of this painting. However, there are some aspects that I don't truly understand. Now I am by no means an artist or know that much about art. I basically only know what I like and refer back to the stories behind the paintings, well sometimes I can.

I think that the tapestry in the back is probably the tapestry that Athena wove. You can see things looking like they are flying around. I think that this might be a representation of the gods that Athena chose to create. The way that the light shines onto the tapestry is significant. It draws the focus to that scene. But in that scene I do not see Arachne. Instead the light creates the shimmering light that I often see when I look at spiderwebs in the direct sunlight. The feeling that Arachne is no longer welcomed into the light comes to mind at this point. Monday, someone talked about the thing hanging on the wall above Arachne's head in the forefront of the painting. This reminded me of a spider's eggs. I think that this is to mean that Athena's legacy will always be in the light while Arachne's will always be in the dark and be something that we cannot understand and likely fear.

It feels like this painting is not only separated by the division of the front and back but also down the middle. The right side is dominated by the human Arachne and the left by the goddess Athena. The ladder symbolizes Athena's higher status in life. The blank doorway signifies Arachne's tenuous life and her close encounter with death. This is to remind the audience that nothing good can ever come from challenging an immortal being. Athena's helper seems to show a closer connection and loyalty to her than do Arachne's helpers. Her helpers seem to be refusing to look at her as they seem to know her fate and fear the monster she is to become.