Art is definitely not a strong suit of mine, so I am just going to tell it like I see it. Now if I were to just see this painting without knowing the story of Arachne and Minerva (which I did not before this class), I would have said that I enjoyed the painting within the painting, or the story within the story aspect. I love paintings that have many things going on at once. I feel like they are more exciting that way.
When I first glanced at the painting, I was studying the foreground scene. My interpretation is that Minerva is spinning on the left, with Arachne weaving between the beams on the right. It appears as if Arachne's aid to her right is treading lightly, afraid of what Minerva will do to her. The woman in the red skirt looks upset as well, like she would rather be anywhere else. Minerva's aid on the other hand appears very loyal. The look they are exchanging tells me that Minerva is saying something along the lines of, "Get ready to close the curtain on this show!"
In the background story, Arachne is presenting her work. I can see the story of Europa and the frame of flowers and ivy that she wove. Arachne is the woman standing in the front of the loom, looking very proud of her accomplishment. Minerva is to her left, wearing her helmet and armor. It looks as if she is pointing something at Arachne's weave, or almost shooting a beam of light at it. I know in the story that Minerva struck at the loom and destroyed it, so she might be doing that in this scene. Lastly, I want to comment on the spectator to the far right. She is looking towards the foreground scene, almost as if she would rather be there, or peering at what started the whole thing.
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