Inspiration - Rembrandt self portraits

Between those fortyyears Rembrandt modeled for himself so many times that we can't help but wonder why. There seems to be several advantages for Rembrandt to turn to the mirror for inspiration. One notion suggests that as a young and struggling artist, Rembrandt was the most readily available model. He could paint himself anytime, anywhere without having to pay or rely on a professional model. Another reason for the multitude of self-portraits may lie in the typical clientele of the time. Rembrandt often painted his own face deep in the shadows or with grimacing expressions, techniques that he certainly could not explore on the portrait of a wealthy client. Kelly noted that fo r Rembrandt, "self-portraits became an outlet for feelings and ideas concerning the nature of human existence which found no satisfactory channel elsewhere." In this case, his own face provided a wide range of opportunity for growth and discovery as an artist.Rembrandt's series of self portraits through out the years became a source of inspiration for my artwork. Firstly in each of the self portraits, there are detailed depictions of each and every structure on the face and accurate capture of the texture of the skin. For the self portraits that were done in the earlier years, the facial textures depicted were rather smooth and the figure looks to be full of energy. As there seems to be a sense of curiousity in his eyes.

As the years progresses, then figures appears to become more serious and tense. It is visible that most of the times he will be frowning. This shows the process of Rembrandt growing and maturing as the years pass.

At the later portraits, wrinkles starts to appear. The face appears to be less energetic but there seems to be a sense of serene and calmness in the expression.

Rembrandt has expressed his life cycle through his self portraits, which is very relevant to my coursework. These portraits show the expressions Rembrandt had at the different stages of his life and also how his facial appearance ages through time.

Through his series of self portraits, we can see Rembrandt's process of aging and how his physical appearances changes as time progresses.