Incostanza. An Allegory of Fickleness
Abraham I Janssens
1615-1618
It is a strange motif. A young woman is holding a crescent moon in one hand and a blue lobster in the other. She does not seem to notice that her bosom is bared and that we are looking at her. The depiction shows "fickleness" in keeping with the era's code books of symbols in art, where the semi-clad woman, the ever-changing moon, and crustaceans - capable of walking sideways - serve as markers for those of a mercurial temperament. The artist, moved by a visual desire that we would now term voyeurism or fetishism, focuses intently on her breasts, which shine with a brightness even greater than that of the crescent-moon face she holds in her hand. The breasts are associated with other feminine characteristics: with bodily matters, impulsivity, and the subconscious as well as with fertility and pregnancy. The woman may be attractive, but she is also potentially dangerous.
SMK – National Gallery of Denmark, Copenhagen · Image: SMK – National Gallery of Denmark, Public domain · Text: SMK – National Gallery of Denmark (text: Henrik Holm & Louise Wolthers) (adapted), CC0