I painted this self portrait for 'Daily Paintworks "All about Me" Challenge ', my new weekly commitment. This painting provoked thoughts beyond colors,edges, shapes,values...Why do artists paint self portraits ?
Rembrandt, Dali, Picasso, Van Gogh, Frida Kahlo..the list is long !
Is it narcissism (maybe YES in Dali's case), is it to communicate perception of self or becoming something through one's art which one desires to be, maybe the simple reason is that 'the artist' is the cheapest and most easily available model :)
I will now paint more self-portraits and through them study my progress as an artist. At this point I am focussed on capturing the likeness . Hopefully after a few I will be able to capture the essence of who I think I am..and maybe subconscious perceptions of 'my self' will manifest in the portraits !
It is a very good portrait.The blue in your hair looks great.
ReplyDeleteThanks Violetta :)
ReplyDeleteI like your portrait too! I think artists paint self portraits because its the hardest thing to do with just your eyes. Everyone has their own way of viewing themselves and see a different person than the rest of the world. Much like the upside down daily paintworks challenge, painting a self portrait involves a focus on painting what you see and not what you think you see.
ReplyDeleteI don't actually know and I'm not an artist (just someone with an expensive hobby), but that's just what I think.
Keep up the good work!