ALEAH CHAPIN (b. 1986), Listening in the Dark, 2018, oil on panel, 24 x 36 in., on view in Portraits and Self-Portraits by Northwest Artists, 1910–2018 at the Cascadia Art Museum (Edmonds, WA) through January 5, 2020
Self-portraits are very much on our collective minds these days. First, there’s the matter of selfies. Thanks to the extraordinarily good cameras built into most smartphones, almost anyone can take a decent photograph of themselves. Most of the resulting images are not great art, so what makes the self-portrait of a professional artist that much better?
This question, among others, is being addressed right now at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Portrait Gallery in its exhibition Eye to I: Self-Portraits from 1900 to Today. On view through August 18, this is a sampling of how more than 75 American artists have chosen to portray themselves over the past 120 years. If you can, we recommend visiting this show in Washington, or at least obtaining its accompanying book, to be published in mid-March.
On offer here is an array of self-portraits painted, sculpted, and drawn by artists who live throughout North America.
We are delighted by what they see in the mirror, and we encourage them to keep looking there in the years ahead, much as Rembrandt and Van Gogh did throughout their careers.
MATTHEW JAMES COLLINS (b. 1970), Self Portrait, 2012, plaster, collection of the artistTANJA GANT (b. 1972), Ego Sum, 2015, graphite on paper, 8 x 11 in., collection of the artistFELICIA FORTE (b. 1979), Self-Portrait, Evening, 2016, oil on paper, 16 x 12 in., private collectionGERALD J. FRITZLER (b. 1953), Fritz, 2012, watercolor on board, 19 x 14 in., collection of the artistARTHUR HAYWOOD (b. 1990), IWill Be Brave, 2015, oil on linen, 10 x 8, available from the artist
ANNA ROSE BAIN
ANNA ROSE BAIN (b. 1985), Silent Snowfall, 2017, oil on linen, 36 x 30 in., available from the artistKAMILLE CORRY (b. 1966), Self Portrait — Winter, 2014, charcoal, charcoal pencil, and gold pigment on paper, 26 x 18 in., private collectionDAVID JON KASSAN (b. 1977), Self-Portrait, 2014–15, charcoal on paper, 16 x 12 in., available from the artistTODD BAXTER (b. 1954), Todd, 2017, pencil on paper, 23 x 19 ½ in., available from the artistKAREN ANN HITT (b. 1960), It’s Personal, 2015, contй crayon and pastel on paper, 13 x 11 in., collection of the artist
MATTHEW BIRD
MATTHEW BIRD (b. 1977), A Work in Progress, 2018, watercolor on paper on aluminum panel, 20 x 16 in., available from the artistELLEN STARR LYON (b. 1974), Lost in Thought, 2018, oil on board, 8 x 8 in., Abend Gallery, DenverJEFFREY T. LARSON (b. 1962), Self-Portrait, 2014, oil on canvas, 24 x 24 in., collection of the artistJIM MCVICKER (b. 1951), Laughing Self, 2012, oil on canvas, 36 x 36 in., collection of the artistJILL BANKS (b. 1958), Randy and Me, 2007, oil on linen, 30 x 40 in., available from the artistLORENA SELIM (b. 1952), Self-Portrait Vanitas, 2016, oil on aluminum panel, 22 x 13 in., collection of the artistLORENA SELIM (b. 1952), Self-Portrait Vanitas, 2016, oil on aluminum panel, 22 x 13 in., collection of the artistDUFFY SHERIDAN (b. 1947), Self-Portrait, 2009, oil on linen, 32 x 30 in., Marshall Gallery of Fine Art, ScottsMARY SAUER (b. 1986). Expectations, 2014, oil on canvas, 60 x 48 in., available from the artistZACK ZDRALE (b. 1977), Self- Portrait 4.09, 2009, oil on canvas, 12 x 9 in., private collectionRADEK VIZINA (b. 1978), Effigy, 2015, oil on panel, 12 in. (diameter), Westland Gallery, London, OntarioKRYSTAL W. BROWN (b. 1968), Guardian (When She Realized), 2018, oil on paper mounted on panel, 11 x 16 in., collection of the artistMICHAEL BERGT (b. 1956), Self-Portrait, 2003, egg tempera on panel, 14 x 11 in., private collectio
