Woman artists 0f the 17th Centurt

PORTRAYING THE SELF

Art subjects vary from one artist to another . The choice largely depends on what the artists what the artist would like to convey to his or her audience . No matter what subjects artists prefer , the one subject that they all share is that of themselves , the self-portrait . Self-portraits are not just a mere reflection of how they look but also of how the artist interprets themselves vis-a-vis the world around them . It is perhaps the most personal narrative that the artist can tell of himself thus making the self-portrait

one of art 's most important subjects

According to the National Portrait Gallery (2005 , self-portrait as an art subject gained much attention as man wanted to leave the world traces of his life . Long before Renaissance artists would use oil pints to make images , others , such as the early Egyptians , the cavemen in Lascaux and the indigenous artists in Australia with their stencils on rock surfaces 20 ,000 years ago , all left their mark . These marks testify their presence and spirit not necessarily as recognizable portraits but certainly as great manifestations of passion for picture making and the need to record their lives . Eventually , the first self-portrait painting collection started in Florence and is now housed in Vasari Corridor of the Uffizi Gallery . Self-portraits as a genre change in relation to artists ' history and societal conditions , patterns and fashions in art Different kinds of self-portraits are produced by both men and women artists at different periods in time

One of the notable self-portrait produced in the 17th century is the Self Portrait at the Easel by Judith Leyster . Leyster is arguably the most renowned Dutch female artist of the Baroque era . She specialized in portraits , still lifes and genre scenes (scenes of common people and everyday life , and is often associated with the Dutch painter Frans Hals . Leyster became the only female member of the Haarlem painters guild , the most popular guild in Netherlands at that time . Her Self-Portarit at the Easel manifested her life working in the male-dominated world of 17th-century Dutch art . Balken (1994 ) said in her article that

The portrait , painted three years before she joined the Guild , is a bold declaration of authority , salesmanship and self-fashioning . Leyster comes across as an artist completely at ease with her vocation Depicting herself with her body aligned on the diagonal and her arm propped casually on the back of a chair -a pose that is said to be borrowed from Hals , Leyster appears with all the poise and appurtenances of an established professional artist . She gazes at the viewer with a knowing smile . Her stylish dress conveys prosperity . The 20-some paintbrushes she balances beneath her palette symbolize her control of her craft . The image reflects both aplomb and a certain posturing in the wish to be linked with the artistic establishment of the time (par 4

Comparing the said art to her male art contemporary Rembrandt , it can be said that Leyster 's self-portrait is more outwardly...