Search the internet for self-portraits by the following artists: Rembrandt van Rijn, Vincent Van Gogh, Susanna Coffey, Lucian Freud, Kathe Kollwitz, Paul Gauguin, Gregory Gillespie, Pablo Picasso, Paul Cezanne, Susanna Coffey, Brett Gamache (a friend of mine).
Create a Word document.
1. For each artist, record the title, year of completion, and country of origin.
2. Identify three comparable (composition, color, mood, etc.) self-portraits from the list. Construct a paragraph which identifies the parallels between these 3 works.
3. Identify the strongest self-portrait. In a paragraph, explain the elements which make it stand out; use your vocabulary words.
4. Typically, self-portraits are not lucrative efforts for living artists. Why might an artist choose to focus on self-portraits? What may drive an artist, like Rembrandt, to devote so much time and effort towards depicting himself? Explain in paragraph form.
5. Proofread and post your document here.
5 comments:
Carlos Silva
Rembrandt Van Rijn Self Portrait
1659
Amsterdam
Vincent Van Gogh self Portrait
1886
France
Susanna Coffey
2002
U.S
Lucian Freud
1985
United Kingdom
Kathe Kollwitz
1912
Germany
Paul Gauguin
1893
France
Gregory Gillespie
1975
America
Pablo Picasso
1907
France
Paul Cezanne
1879
Switzerland
Brett Gamache
2008
U.S
The three Comparable self portraits are those of Pablo Picasso, Vincent Van Gogh, and Cezanne. These are all similar because they focus strongly on them selves. There are similar colors on all of these as well. One last reason is because they are all from a similar time period. This is how these paintings are similar.
The strongest self portrait would be Lucian Freud’s for a few reasons. One reason is because the focal point is his face which is shown to have many wrinkles. The hue also makes it seem like he is a muscular man. The lines on his face represent what he looks like or what hardships he has been through in life. This is why this is the strongest self portrait.
Artists choose to focus on self portraits for a few reasons. One reason is because they want to show the world what they look like. Another reason is because they want to be remembered for there appearance. Rembrandt would devote so much time because he wants people to know what he looked like through out the different stages of his life. This is why artists spend so much time on there self portraits.
1.) Rembrandt van Rijn: Self-Portrait; 1660; Dutch
Vincent Van Gogh: Self-Portrait with bandaged ear; 1889; Amsterdam
Susanna Coffey: Self-Portrait; 2001
Lucian Freud: Self-Portrait (Reflection); 1922; Britain
Kathe Kollwitz: Self-Portrait seated at a table; 1892;
Paul Gauguin: Self-Portrait; 1889; French
Gregory Gillespie: self-Portrait with yellow background; 1999; American
Pablo Picasso: Self-Portrait 1906; 1906; Spain
Paul Cezanna: Self-Portrait; 1879; Russia
Brett Gamache: Self Portrait; 2008; America
2.) The Self-Portraits of Susanna Coffey, Lucian Freud and Gregory Gillespie all had the focal point of their faces. Their paintings show realism and the faces draws in the viewer in. Gillespie and Freud both use specific colors in order to the realism in the painting. All three of the portraits, demonstrate the misery of one self.
3.)One of the strongest self-portraits would be the Self-Portrait reflection of Lucian Freud. His portrait shows realism, composition and balance. The self-portrait looks like it could be a sculpture instead of a painting. Freud made it look like his face is upset and look old. The face draws the viewer in and is the focal point of the whole portrait.
4.) An artist might choose to focus on self-portraits to appreciate themself. Also, they could paint themselves because it shows how they want people to view them by. Even though self-portraits don’t provide money for the artist, they feel free to paint anything about them. One might put effort in taking time making portraits because they would feel important and the main subject.
Rembrandt van Rijn
The self portrait of Rembrandt van Rijn was made with an oil canvas, Dutch, in 1660. The portrait now sits in the museum, Hendrickje Stoffels.
Susanna Coffey
The self portrait of Susanna Coffey was made in oil canvas during the year of 2003.
Paul Cezanne
The self portrait of Paul Cezanne was made oil canvas around the year of 1862.
These three self portraits which are constructed by Rembrandt van Rijn, Susanna Coffey and Paul Cezanne have many similarities between them. The color of all three of these portraits seems to have a blending type of shade. They all have dark shades with just a bit of yellow to brighten the face of the person. When comparing all the portraits, the sense of a darker mood comes to mind because the colors are cool and they do not show a brighter, happier logic of life. The composition of these portraits follows the same type of pattern. They all have darker colors above them and in different spaces around their faces. Their facial expressions are similar because they all have a serious look.
The strongest self portrait out of the three would be Susanna Coffey’s. This is the strongest because it gives off the feeling of destruction while comparing the emotion of the background. The background of the image exemplifies fire and a sense of the world coming to an end because the fire is burning against the water which is usually seen as calming. The color and mood become very similar when examining the portrait because the color shows how the mood of fear and death come to mind. The focal point of the portrait is her face. Since her eyes are closed, like I said before, it gives you the feeling that she does not want to see the destruction behind her; almost as if the world is going to end.
Artists have the ability to creative whatever it is they want and some tend to focus on the type of art that consists of self portraits. Rembrandt is one of those artists who takes a lot of time when creating his self portraits. He could have many reasons for why he takes his time on his portraits. One of these reasons he may take his time doing so is because he wants to make himself seem more elegant or attractive. The second reason is because he may actually care how people view him and he wants his artwork to be precise. The third and final reason he could care so much about his artwork is because he wants people to view him as an intelligent artist and show that he puts much thought and care into his work.
Rembrandt Van Rijn Self Portrait 1659 Dutch
Vincent Van Gogh Self Portrait: Saint-Rémy 1889 Dutch
Susanna Coffey Aphaia 2007 American
Lucien Freud Self Portrait 1952 British
Kathe Kollwitz Self Portrait 1947 German
Paul Gauguin Self Portrait 1889 French
Gregory Gillespie Myself Painting A Self Portrait 1980-1981 American
Pablo Picasso Self Portrait 1907 Spanish
Paul Cézanne Self Portrait with Rose Background 1875 French
Brett Gamache Self Portrait 2 2008 American
Gregory Gillespie’s Myself Painting A Self Portrait (1980-1981), Paul Gauguin’s Self Portrait (1889), and Susanna Coffey’s Aphaia (2007) all have a bright color scheme, a unique composition, and an overall difference from the other self-portraits. The bright blue colors in her portrait give a new mood and modern twist to make Susan Coffey’s self-portrait look almost futuristic. The angle she views herself differs from the accepted self portrait that most artists conform to. Gauguin’s portrait too has a bright yellow background that makes his picture pop. His facial expression and angle makes his portrait differed from artists’ like Van Gogh and Rembrandt portraits. Gregory Gillespie’s painting of himself painting a self portrait totally strays from the self-portrait formula, and his clothing and body language suggest a less formal view on himself. The three artists Gillespie, Gauging, and Coffey all take a new twist on their portraits using color, composition and individuality.
The strongest self-portrait is Susanna Coffey’s Aphaia (2007) because of its altered reality, vibrant color, and extreme perspective. Her individuality shows through this painting; the color scheme really emphasizes her own creativity. The color blue can symbolize feelings of calm and peace, but can also create an aura of sadness. The contrast between her blue lips and the pale pink tones in her face create a cold image, and helps the viewer to understand how Coffey sees herself. The angle also creates a dramatic and intense feeling like she is looking up at up, rather than straight at the viewer. The reality of her image is stripped away with the strokes she uses as she paints and the strange color scheme she used rather than stereotypical self portrait colors. Susanna Coffey’s individuality and creativity are clearly conveyed in her self-portrait Aphaia.
An artist’s self-portrait is like what a photograph is to people today. There were no cameras during most of recent history, so if artists wished to depict themselves in an image they simply had to draw it. However, in an image they create, the artists true feelings and opinions can show through their drawing or painting while in a photograph they are just pixels. Self-portraits can create a new kind of creativity for the artist to experiment with and begin understand. They want a memory, and personal memory that they can preserve without the cold impersonality of a photograph. Artists like Rembrandt that drew hundreds of drawings of themselves didn’t create them to be vain or selfish but rather they were on a journey to self-knowledge and discovery. Artists draw themselves to they can further understand themselves, and leave that knowledge for the future generations.
• Rembrandt van Rijn- Self-portrait as young man-1628- Amsterdam
• Vincent Van Gogh- Self-portrait- 1886- The Netherlands
• Susanna Coffey- Self-portrait(kiss)-2001-America
• Lucian Freud- Self-portrait- 1952- Jamaica
• Kathe Kollwitz- Self-portrait seated at a table-1892-Germany
• Paul Gauguin- Self-portrait- 1889- France
• Gregory Gillespie-Self-portrait with banana -2000- America
• Pablo Picasso- Self-portrait- 1896- Spain
• Paul Cezanne- Self-portrait- 1861- France
• Brett Gamache- Self-portrait-2008- America
2. Three comparable things between three portraits are color, mood and figurative. The three portraits I chose are Van Gogh’s, Paul Gauguin’s, and Rembrandt’s. In Gauguin’s and Van Gogh’s the colors are really bright and warm. In Rembrandt’s the colors are dark, cool, and earthy. The color affects the mood. In Rembrandt’s the mood is subtle and straight forward. The other two catch your attention and are a happier mood with the bright color.
3. I think that the most impressive is Van Gogh’s self-portrait. The color really catches the viewer’s eye. The painting is also realistic looking but not so realistic that it looks like a photo; you can tell it’s a painting because you can see some brush strokes and such. I also like how the image is really straight forward. Its just his face and nothing else; a classic self-portrait.
4. I’m not really sure why artists paint self-portraits. One theory I have is that the painter always sees their famous paintings and maybe they want to see a successful painting that is focused on them in every way.
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