Iconography in Art: The Halo Research Proposal

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Given some other details of the painting's construction, however, and specifically of the halo, this interpretation could be seen in an ironic light.

Most of the painting's colors are quit vibrant, with red and yellow dominating. There are several instances in the painting where certain objects seem to blend in with or fade into the background. The halo is one such object; in both color and size it is one of the least assuming objects in the painting, and almost no attention would be focused on it if not for its mention in the title. Gauguin could be ironically commenting on his attitude towards religion, hedonism, or just basic lust, but the near transparency of the halo makes it hard to accept as sincere.

The nearly complete use of space Gauguin employs in this painting has a nearly claustrophobic effect; even the fields of red and yellow that dominate, respectively, the upper and lower halves of the painting are textured enough to appear fully substantial rather than merely background. In addition, the painting is broken up by so many images that it is hard to take it all in at once, adding to the feeling of closeness that almost presses on the viewer's eyes. Gauguin does not employ any lines at all in the painting, instead seeming to have gone to certain lengths to ensure that every part of every object rendered in the painting is curved, complete with the drooping, phallus-like flowers.

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Just as there has been an abandonment of line, Gauguin has also done away with any attempt at perspective, instead simply rendering the images as they appear in his mind rather than in a linear universe. The proportion and scale of the various objects seems haphazard at best; the apples are somewhat in proportion to the pictured head of the artist, but the "serpent" held in the hand of the figure is smaller than even a typical grass snake, and the flowers growing up to where Gauguin's neck ought to be are huge in comparison. T is highly unlikely that these dimensions are actually accidental or unlikely, but it is impossible to determine with any sense of certainty exactly what Gauguin was attempting to communicate with this style.

Despite all of the confusion in the painting, there is a certain vertical balance to the two halves. This is more disrupted than over-riding, however, and the visual movements in the painting seem to be in all direction -- the figure down and to the left, the flowers straight up the middle, and even the apples appear as though they might fall straight down.

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