West 1 Anna West Helen Smith AP English Literature IV November 8, 2016 A Study of the Art of Portraiture Portrait art has existed, in various forms, since the beginning of human life. The ability to recognize individuals and facial expressions has been one of the key elements of human survival. Because of this, the natural interest in the human face has led to centuries worth of portrait art and a continuous development of the artform. This paper will research the evolution of Portrait art from the High Renaissance era, The 20th century, and The 21st Century. It will also analyze iconic artists of each period such as: Albrecht Durer, Edward S. Curtis and Kim Kardashian West Renaissance Portrait Style and a Study of Albrecht Durer Portraiture truly became masterful during the Northern Renaissance (c.1420-1520) era. During this time a focus on realism occurred and artists sought to create pieces of art that looked as authentic as photographs are now. New techniques emerged such as the the convex mirror, linear perspective and subtle shading in order to achieve this ideal. In an effort to create clear and vivacious artworks artists also transitioned to using oil paints. (Messina) Albrecht Durer’s works are an excellent example of what many artists hoped to achieve. His works are clear, anatomically correct, and strikingly realistic. In his work “Self Portrait at the Age of Twenty Eight,” these characteristics are demonstrated. The colors are rich and bold and
Transcript
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Anna West Helen Smith AP English Literature IV November 8, 2016 A Study of the Art of Portraiture
Portrait art has existed, in various forms, since the beginning of human life. The ability to
recognize individuals and facial expressions has been one of the key elements of human survival.
Because of this, the natural interest in the human face has led to centuries worth of portrait art
and a continuous development of the artform. This paper will research the evolution of Portrait
art from the High Renaissance era, The 20th century, and The 21st Century. It will also analyze
iconic artists of each period such as: Albrecht Durer, Edward S. Curtis and Kim Kardashian
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Renaissance Portrait Style and a Study of Albrecht Durer
Portraiture truly became masterful during the Northern Renaissance (c.1420-1520) era.
During this time a focus on realism occurred and artists sought to create pieces of art that looked
as authentic as photographs are now. New techniques emerged such as the the convex mirror,
linear perspective and subtle shading in order to achieve this ideal. In an effort to create clear and
vivacious artworks artists also transitioned to using oil paints. (Messina)
Albrecht Durer’s works are an excellent example of what many artists hoped to achieve.
His works are clear, anatomically correct, and strikingly realistic. In his work “Self Portrait at the
Age of Twenty Eight,” these characteristics are demonstrated. The colors are rich and bold and
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Durer’s hand and face both appear to be symmetrical and almost photographic. “Self portrait at
the Age of Twenty Eight” also displays the basic traits of the artistic style as it denotes the
political and cultural environment of the time, successfully personalizes the subject, and
indicates the subject’s social status while still demonstrating Durer’s own artistic style.
(Fitzpatrick 15-30)
19th Century Portrait Style, the Introduction of the Camera, and a study of Edward S.
Curtis
By the nineteenth century Portrait art had developed rapidly. With the introduction of the
camera in the 1830s artists found a far more literal way to create realistic art by capturing
people’s appearances with technology. Many great artists saw the introduction of photography as
the death of popular demand for portraits. However, Artist Edward S. Curtis took advantage of
technology’s rapid development to create stunning portraits of Native Americans. He worked
from 1900-1930 seeking to document the cultural identity of a people that had been forced onto
reservations just a century beforehand. His collection of photos also sought to address the
discourse and heated politics surrounding the Native Americans’ place in 20th century America.
With the ability to take numerous photographs of his artistic subjects Curtis was able to create a
large collection of portraits that reflected the traditions and identity of the Native American
people. (Whidu). He would end up taking over forty thousand images of the members of over
eighty different tribes.
Curtis’s works portray the drastic contrast of Native American and European cultures.
However, they also unveil the similarity of rich traditional heritage and dignified leaders by
examining Indian culture more closely through the lens of his camera. In doing so, he was able to
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champion a progressive message for his time: namely that Indians were far from savage
nuisances and that Native American culture was just as complex and historically worthy of study
as European cultures. It may be seen that in each of his photos the status and societal place of his
subjects can be easily inferred. His works range from photos of young women to elderly chiefs,
and thoughtfully portray each person’s important role within their society. Unlike many other
portrait artists of the day who chose to focus on photographing only the wealthy industrialists of
the day, Curtis chose to explore a politically underrepresented and nationally ignored population.
Curtis’s open-mindedness about who he photographed is part of the reason that his works are
still immensely popular today.
Just as Curtis decided to follow his own pathway about who he photographed he also
chose to photograph his subjects in a unique manner. Although at first his style may seem typical
for the era, with it’s centered subjects and dark monochromatic background, his style is actually
quite different. The first noticeable difference is the natural and intimate gaze of his subjects as
they directly address the camera with their eyes.(Whidu). This exhibition of subject- camera
intimacy is demonstrated in works of his such as “Coups Well Known, Apsaroke.” The second
is his ability to capture images of the traditional garments of tribal life. In many of his photos,
men wear traditional headdresses of feathers and garments of buckskin. An example of this
includes his work “Three Horses.” Women and men may also be seen wearing their hair in two
long braids, which was a tradition for many tribes including the Arikara people. Images of this
may be seen in his photograph, “‘The Rush Gatherer ’an Arikara woman.” Curtis’s ability to
personalize the artwork through intimate and purposeful posing as well as his beautiful inclusion
of traditional Native American dress is indicative of his talent as a portrait artist.
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Edward S. Curtis is an exceptional example of the drastic changes in portrait art that
occurred between the Renaissance era and the Twentieth century. His works portray the change
in medium from oil paint to photography and the new found and progressive ability to
photograph less wealthy and less socially dominant cultures. However, his ability to deliver a
statement within the political scene of the day, personalize his subjects within the artwork, and
leave behind a remnant of the person’s status and culture. While also creating works that were
unique to his own personal style as an artist, demonstrate that he is still able to be labeled as a
traditional a portrait artist.
The 21st Century Portrait and a study of Kim Kardashian
The twenty first century is a time of extraordinary and rapid social, technological and
cultural change. With the introduction of the internet to the world in the late 1990s and its
continued growing popularity and accessibility, the world was forever altered. Suddenly, people
had access to videos, chat rooms, articles and ideas that served to connect the entire world almost
instantaneously.
With this newfound globalization came the rise of social media. After myspace came
facebook, then twitter, then instagram, etc… The masses now had an opportunity to publicize
their life to the world and create an online presence for themselves. Social media continued
growing and the social phenomenon of the “selfie” became a global trend in 2013. The “selfie”
or a photograph of yourself taken by yourself, is the newest and most popular form of portraiture.
Although many criticize the “selfie” for it’s inherent narcissism the vast majority of the
population has embraced it for what it is- photographic portraiture,“While the media may be
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more tech-heavy than previous centuries, the examination of self remains, perhaps with even
more questions of what that means than ever before.” (Meier).
If closely examined, the “selfie” can be identified as including all of the basic traits of
classical portraiture. In demonstrating the subject's social class, an interesting thing about the
“selfie” is that it is available to people of pretty much all social classes- because with
technological developments like the Iphone, the ability to document oneself is no longer an
expensive and time consuming endeavor. The “selfie” also allows for personalization and
artistic style. How you choose to photograph yourself, the angle, the outfit, the setting, is all
indicative of the individual’s artistic and personalized choices.
The “selfie” is also interesting because for the first time many have found the art of self
portraiture as a way to find economic success through self promotion. A perfect example of this
is reality TV star and social media mogul Kim Kardashian West. She currently has 86.7 million
instagram followers and has made around $150 million dollars in the celebrity business. The
statistics are striking but what is most provocative about her is her ability to remain popular.
With almost daily social media updates it is truly her online presence and ability to appear
“relevant” that has made her so successful. She made herself a brand and she used that brand to
sell products. At one point she even sold an entire art book of her own “selfies” entitled Selfish .
(Book Cover).
Although access to self portraiture is now more available to the masses, class distinctions
may still be deducted from each “selfie”. Many choose to bejewel themselves and find other
ways to not so subtly include their riches within the photo, Kim Kardashian West included.
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Recently, due to a photo that prominently displayed West’s wedding ring, she was brutally
robbed in Paris. (Untitled selfie with engagement ring).
The selfie can also demonstrates the political nature of the era. Recently several filters
have been developed to show support for either of the political candidates in the 2016 American
presidential election. Lastly, the “selfie” may also be identified as portraiture because of it’s
literal cultural effect on the millennial generation. The “selfie” effected the millennial culture by
allowing people to share their images with the entire world.Because of this there is greater
pressure on people to appear beautiful in photos and have an “acceptable” amount of followers
(Franco). However, the “selfie” also helps tear down the same social construct. With popular
trends such as “no makeup Mondays” the ability for the average person to share their image
counters the narrow minded and beauty oriented media by sharing the control over what is
publicized as “beautiful.”
In conclusion, the “selfie” may be crowned as the newest and most wildly popular form
of portraiture there has ever been. Although popularly criticized by many people of older
generations, it is a logical progression within the art form. At first there were oil paintings, then
there was the introduction of photography, then there was the invention of the internet and the
camera/phone duo. Portraiture is a timeless art that is perfect in its demonstration of mankind's
ability to adapt and reinvent a meaningful and relevant image for each new generation.
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Works Cited
Curtis, Edward S. Coups Well Known, Apsaroke. 1908. Photograph, Library of Congress,
Washington D.C.
Curtis, Edward S. “The Rush Gatherer”an Arikara woman. 1908. Photograph, Library of
Congress, Washington D.C.
Curtis, Edward S. Three Horses. 1905. Photograph, Library of Congress, Washington D.C.
Durer, Albrecht. Self Portrait at the Age of Twenty Eight. 1500. Acrylic paint, Panel painting, Oil
paint, Alte Pinakothek, Munich.
Fitzpatrick, Anne. The Renaissance / by Anne Fitzpatrick. Mankato: Creative Education,
2006. 15-30.Print
Franco, James. "The Meanings of the Selfie." The New York Times . The New York Times, 28
Dec. 2013. Web. 08 Nov. 2016.
Kardashian, Kim. Selfish . New York: Rizzoli, 2015. Book Cover. Print.
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Kardashian, Kim. Untitled Selfie with her wedding ring. 2016. Kim Kardashian. Kimkardashian ,
Instagram . Photograph.Web. 21 Nov 2016.
Meier, Allison. "The Portrait in the 21st Century." Hyperallergic RSS . Hyperallergic, 28 March.
2014. Web. 14 Sept. 2016.
Messina., By Antonello Da. "Renaissance Portraits (c.1400-1550)." Renaissance Portraits
