I chose option one.
Albrecht Durer was a German artist in the 15th and 16th Centuries. He lived in Nuremberg, during there golden age. Though out his life he was the first to do many things which changed the look of art to the modern styles. He creates many self portraits in many different settings and styles. Durer was also the first artist to use the printing press to make multiple copies of of his work so many people could own the same art work. This impacted the way things were made and used though out Europe. His works of arts were sent all over at that point he became international noticed and were famous for for his monogram that was his signature. Durer ego was built on by his trip to Italy where his outlook on artist changed to them being "noble intellectuals, participants in humanistic discourse, purveyors of ideas as well as pictures".
Though out his years he had many self portraits. Each painting was different and had him looking different then the one before.
The 1500 self portrait (page 676) is the one that is most famous of himself. It was created in a time that had used the three quarter view, but his is straight on because he made him self resemble Christ. When you look at it, it looks like he's starting right into your soul when really he's staring at himself making him feel himself through his eyes. For this painting he even painted his hair a different color to match Christ's hair. His self Portraits always showed great depth hidden within the painting. Normally you would think something like this would be blasphemous, but during that time the Christian devotion was to imitate Christ in the believer's own life. Durer had Italianate feature in his works of art from his time in Italy. For example, he uses a triangular composition which fit in with the harmony and balance. Then he draws on early Northern Europe art by the surface texture emphasised the most in the fur collar of his clothes.
All in all, his works of art has made art the modern type it is today. He changed the way people think of different types art.
This self-portrait is also very naturalistic and individualized, which help to place this portrait in the Northern tradition. However, it also manifests Italian influence and humanism. For example, as a "learned artist," Dürer writes the inscription on his painting in Latin.
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It's interesting how Durer's self portraits always turned out so differently, even his hair color. Durer was a great artist, who was able to blend his native norther culture with his Italian influence into wonderful pieces, a talent in and of itself. Great post! ~Lacey
ReplyDeleteAfter viewing Durer's self portraits I feel that each piece shows how he could have been perceiving himself at the time. It could explain why the 1500 self portrait resembles Christ. Albrect Durer seems to be an interesting character, he is a very mysterious person.
ReplyDeleteHe was also the first to use a type of “logo” of you will. He use to mark all his paintings with an AD. This is so fascinating to learn for a graphic design major. It's funny because he inadvertently influenced my life as well. It's amazing how one person's actions can trickle so far down.
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