The Idea of Jealousy Through The Eyes of Duy Huynh’s Gravitea for Two
When the person closest to you shifts their attention, jealousy takes over. Becoming someone’s number one priority is something most take pride in. The feeling of no longer being at the top of one’s list makes you feel as if you are no longer good enough; you start to despise the ones getting more attention. The two people in the picture are most prominent; they give away the time and social class, and even the emotions they may have been feeling. The tea makes me think of the bitterness of wrongdoings and wealth. The apple in the center is the fragileness of the bond between the two people as well as monetary wealth. In Duy Huynh’s painting, Gravitea for Two, he presents the theme of jealousy through various symbols. Present in the painting is a couple having tea together but the air is full of uncertainty and questions.
The two people in the image represent the uncomfortable nature of the situation through body language and clothing. They are in close proximity to one another; one could presume theyare close (whether they be a couple, friends, or even business partners). Knowing this, one can make the conclusion that they together have gained economic wealth and good status. The clothes the people are wearing show that they could be from the late eighteen-hundreds and have decent or tons of wealth. All throughout history, having or wearing expensive fabrics shows people that you have money, power, and are in a sense above others who don’t. The lady’s dress in the image is a bright red; bolder colors are also a tale-tell sign of wealth and maybe even good health. Bland colors can be seen as drab, boring, and depending on the quality, cheap. The woman’s facial expression shows one of sadness and a longing for more or better treatment. Within the picture there sits a vase of flowers in between the two. In the time period presented, married men would often have other mistresses thus making their marriage uncomfortable and disloyal. Some of the flowers have floadted out of the vase and are lingering. I see the astray flowers as other people getting in the way of the main relationship. The mistress would then most times be neglected by their husband, and they would rarely have any intimate moments together because the males would be focused on everything else. In some cases, the wife would still be in love with their spouse thus making them jealous. The color red a lot of times holds the meaning of love, lust, the feeling of being sexy, and so on; it’s possible the woman had planned for the two to have tea together in an attempt to have time alone with her spouse. She planned on wearing this bright red dress that flatters her figure to draw their attention towards her instead of anything else.
The apple in the image can represent wealth as well as their fragile marriage. The apple sits evenly in between the couple as they enjoy their tea. Seeing that the apple is green, some would relate it to monetary wealth. They have almost anything they could ask for when it comes to material things but it’s never really a source of happiness. People are drawn to money; if a male is known to have money, certain females will be drawn to them whether they have a mistress or not. Thus the mistress could feel as if she may be in competition with other females if her spouse seems to be giving them his attention in a way that is not appropriate. Once an apple is bitten into it starts to turn brown and rot. There is something in the relationship that can jeopardize the entire thing; the smallest thing can trespass into the relationship and rot it from the inside out.
The tea in the image can both represent immoral doings and wealth. In most cases, money can’t buy happiness. The name of the image is Gravitea for Two…the tea in the image could mean multiple things. The people in the image seem to be sitting down in mid-air, so it could be said that they are above others because of their wealth. They are able to enjoy luxury items such as expensive tea in fancy China wear if they so please. The woman may have gotten her alone time with her spouse as she wished, but she doesn’t feel satisfied with it. Something about the situation just isn’t sitting right with her; there is a bitter aftertaste lingering on her tongue that she can’t seem to wash away. The couple has all this wealth but isn’t happy in their relationship; it has become one-sided. Yes, they may have power and persuasion over others, but this doesn’t mean that they are happy with where they are in the relationship. The male doesn’t seem to be showing much emotion overall, but he does seem as if he’s looking directly at his spouse with maybe the smallest bit of regret (but I guess there will never be a real answer). Maybe just maybe for a second, his heart puts itself before his ego. The Gravitea of the situation is heavy and lingering; it leaves a bad taste in the woman’s mouth and she longs for some sugar to sweeten it.
The theme of jealousy is displayed throughout Duy Huynh’s painting using multiple symbols. The couple is under this uncomfortable heaviness about the current state of their deteriorating relationship. The fragility is shown through a green apple that can easily be eaten at to then put the relationship on strings. Wrongdoings can leave a bad taste in people’s mouths leaving them confused as to why it may have happened; the tea is the bitterness left after finding out that their relationship is in jeopardy. It also symbolizes the material wealth that currently posses thinking it would bring happiness. Addressing someone’s loyalty is sometimes an uncomfortable situation that can bring up feelings and thoughts that may have needed to been stated to prevent ruining a good relationship.
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