but it's actually one of the most analyzed paintings in the history of art.

但其實這幅畫，是藝術史上最常被研究分析的作品之一

It's called "Las Meninas," or "The Maids of Honor,"

這幅畫是《Las Meninas》或《宮女》(註：另譯為《侍女》)

painted by Diego Velázquez in 1656,

迪亞哥．委拉斯奎茲在1656年所創作

and it depicts a scene in the life of the Spanish Royal Court.

畫中描繪西班牙皇室的生活情景

A well-dressed child princess refuses a glass of water from a handmaid,

精心打扮的小公主，婉拒侍女遞給她的水

while a dwarf teases a dog.

一位侏儒正在戲弄小狗

A second dwarf stands next to them,

而另一位侏儒就站在旁邊

while the artist himself pauses at his canvas.

畫家在自己的畫布前定格

Two more people whisper in the background,

兩個人在後面說著悄悄話

while a third appears to be exiting the room,

還有第三個人，看起來正要離開房間

and why wouldn't he when there seems to be so little going on?

他為什麼看起來意興闌珊的樣子還不離去?

Even the dog looks bored.

甚至連小狗都一臉無聊的樣子

But look more closely.

再仔細看

The two people reflected in the blurry mirror at the back,

有兩個人的身影，被映入後方一面模糊的鏡子裡

easily missed at first glance,

看第一眼很容易忽略了的身影

are none other than King Philip IV and Queen Mariana,

不是別人，正是國王菲利浦四世和皇后瑪麗安娜

seemingly changing the scene from a simple depiction of court life

這麼一來，這幅畫就從單純的皇家生活描繪

to that of a royal portrait.

變成了皇室成員肖像畫

And with this piece of information,

而透過這則訊息

we can begin to understand far more about the painting

我們可以開始深入了解這幅畫

and why it has captivated viewers for centuries.

並了解這幅畫為何令觀眾著迷，長達好幾世紀

First, there's the historical context.

第一，是因為其中的歷史背景

When "Las Meninas" was painted at the end of Philip's reign,

《宮女》創作時，菲利浦國王的政權已到末期

the Spanish Empire was in a period of decline,

西班牙帝國 (註：西班牙哈布斯堡王朝) 正在衰落

having suffered defeat in The Thirty Years War,

於「三十年戰爭」中挫敗

as well as economic and political difficulties.

經濟和政治上的處境都十分艱難

The King himself had also suffered misfortune,

而在此同時，國王也正遭遇不幸

losing both his first wife and his only heir to the throne before remarrying.

他再婚前，同時失去了第一任妻子和唯一能繼承王位的子嗣

But the painting obscures their struggle to provide food for their household.

畫中隱約透露出王室勉強維持生計的訊息

Even the monarch's advanced age is concealed through the blurring of the mirror.

甚至王朝已到暮年的事實，都隱藏在模糊的鏡中

What we do see in the geometric center of the canvas,

我們在畫布的幾何中心看到

brightly illuminated by the light from the window,

被窗外光線照亮的

is the Infanta Margarita Teresa,

是瑪格麗特．德蕾莎公主

the King's only living legitimate child at the time.

國王當時唯一還活著的合法繼承子女

Her glowing and healthy appearance

她光彩和健康的外表形象

is an idealized view of the struggling empire's future.

是艱困的帝國，最理想的未來形象

However, the Infanta is not the only center of the painting.

然而，公主並不是這幅畫的唯一中心

Through the clever use of perspective,

由於靈巧的透視法運用

as well as painting the work life-sized, on a 10.5 x 9 foot canvas,

以及10.5×9英尺畫布上的真人尺寸繪畫

Velázquez blurs the boundary between art and reality,

委拉斯奎茲模糊了「藝術」和「真實」之間的界線

creating the sense of a three-dimensional picture that we can walk into.

創造出立體的空間感，彷彿我們能走入畫中

The line between the ceiling and the wall converges to the open door,

天花板和牆面的消點，就在這扇打開的門上

further creating the perception

更塑造了一種認知

of the painting as a physical space seen from the viewer's perspective.

藉由觀眾的(透視)消點方向，創造出畫和真實世界的相對空間感

In this sense, the audience and the real world are the focus,

這樣一來，觀眾和真實世界，就是畫中世界所凝視的對象

underlined by the three figures looking straight at the viewer.

畫中三個人物直視著觀眾，更強調了這層關係

But there is still another focal point.

但這幅畫還有另一個焦點

The line formed by the light fixtures leads to the center of the back wall

燈具的方向，把消點指向後面這道牆中間

to the mirror reflecting the royal couple.

反射了王室伉儷的鏡子上

And its positioning relative to the viewer

相對於觀眾的位置

has led to radically different interpretations of the entire work.

鏡子表現了這幅作品另一個截然不同的解讀方向

The mirror could be reflecting the King and Queen posing for their portrait,

鏡子的反射，可能是國王和皇后正擺出肖像畫中的姿勢

or is it reflecting the canvas?

或鏡子可能反射了畫布?

And what do we make of the fact that Velázquez never painted the royal portrait implied here?

那我們能從「委拉斯奎茲從未畫過王室伉儷肖像」這件事實中，得到什麼暗示?

Could the painting actually be depicting its own creation instead?

可能畫布上，其實是畫家正在創作這幅作品?

With the incorporation of the mirror into his work,

因為在畫中安排了這面鏡子

Velázquez elevated the art of painting from its perception as a simple craft

委拉斯奎茲將繪畫藝術，從一般認知中的單純工藝

to an intellectual endeavor.

提升為智慧成就

With its three competing center points,

由於這三個衝突的焦點

"Las Meninas" captures the contrast between the ideal,

《宮女》掌握了理想、

the real,

真實、

and the reflected worlds,

和反射世界，三者之間的對照

maintaining an unresolved tension between them

維持了彼此之間懸而未決的緊張局勢

to tell a more complex story than any mirror can provide.

訴說著比所有鏡子所能映照出來的，都還要複雜的故事