Amrita Sher-Gil’s self-portraits serve as a remarkable element of her rather elaborate oeuvre accomplished in a short career. At the École des Beaux Arts in Paris, where she studied for about three years, the Hungarian-Indian painter won the first prize for the annual still-life and portrait competition each year. Talking about her time in the French capital, she wrote in an article in 1937: “In 1932, I exhibited my first picture at the Grand Salon. By way of explanation to the few who may not know its significance, I will mention that the Grand Salon is equivalent to the British Royal Academy but on a somewhat larger and artistically superior scale. My pictures immediately attracted the attention of eminent critics who liked them for their forcefulness and vigour.”
She was subsequently elected as an associate of the Grand Salon, making her the youngest and the only Asian individual to have received this recognition.
Sher-Gil, who didn’t live long after writing the article, left over 30 self-portraits— several of which have led global auctions on Indian art. “The bohemian lifestyle
Along with her Mexican contemporary Frida Kahlo, Sher-Gil is considered among the greatest avant-garde women artists who were plying their trade in the early 20th century. “At around the same time as Sher-Gil, Kahlo was painting the most powerful self-portraits in Mexico. The parallel artistic careers and personal lives of Sher-Gil and Kahlo are uncanny. Their life
Pioneers of the game
A majority of Sher-Gil’s works from her oeuvre are now in the collection of the National Gallery of Modern Art in Delhi. Her self-portraits form an important part of this collection comprising well over 172 works. “Sher-Gil’s self-portraits done over the short span of her life are intimate and very personal way of engaging with her prolific practice and connecting with the artist,” says Tunty Chauhan of Delhi’s Gallery Threshold, which recently marked its 25th anniversary with an exhibition on self-portraits titled, Reflecting the Self, featuring 60 works by 30 artists.
In India, self-portraits were never the preferred mode of expression during any age. However, Indian art history, beyond Sher-Gil, has many examples of artists who explored ways to reflect on themselves through self-portraiture. One can even come across self-portraits of artists in miniatures from Mughal ateliers, who at times featured themselves in works. That practice has been carried forward by artists like Sunanda Khajuria, whose works have a unique quality about them as each composition has a presence of women as central figures. These, according to the artist, are her own self-portraits—seemingly abstract in nature. “The women [featured in my work] represent various aspects of my character, and their presence infuses my art with a sense of familiarity and belonging. By portraying different personas, I can explore and communicate the intricate nuances of my own identity. Each painting acts as a doorway into my emotions, thoughts and experiences, which are woven into the fabric of these characters’ lives,” says the 44-year-old artist.
Some of the prominent Indian artists who are known for their self-portraits include MF Husain, FN Souza, Raja Ravi Varma, Rabindranath Tagore and Manjit Bawa. “There is something much deeper in the way they perceive and understand the self—both from the inside and the outside. There is a level of discomfort in looking within, it is so much easier to paint a portrait than a self-portrait. Several Indian artists have consistently painted themselves. MF Husain, A Ramachandran and V Ramesh come to mind immediately, their self-portraits are markers of time and reveal the journey of these artists,” says Chauhan of Gallery Threshold.
Over the years
In the West, the tradition of self-portraiture is well-established with many artists excelling in their self-representation. “Although self-portraits have been made since the earliest times, it is not until the Early Renaissance (mid-15th century) that artists can be frequently identified depicting themselves as either the main subject, or as important characters in their work. Throughout history, self-portraiture has remained a tried and true practice between artists. Historically, in fact, artists used self-portraits as a kind of calling card, attesting to their ability to capture a likeness and giving a sense of their capabilities. But a self-portrait can evoke and reveal much more when taken beyond the bounds of straightforward exercise,” Singh says.
Over the decades, the market
Today, Kahlo is more popular than her husband, with whom she shared complicated marital life due to Diego’s unfaithfulness. It was the influential Austrian thinker, Sigmund Freud (grandfather of Lucian Freud)—the founder of psychoanalysis—who had commissioned the couple to paint portraits of themselves, many of which are in private collections. Deigo’s The Ravages of Time (1949) and The Firestone Self-Portrait (1941) are the best examples of his experimentation with self-portraits.
The art of self-portraiture has flourished in the West with many departed European and American artists such as Rembrandt (over 100 self-portraits), Picasso (whose last painting was a self-portrait), Egon Schiele (popular for his series of self-portraits), Max Oppenheimer (best known for his self-portrait titled Selbstbildmis) and others experimenting with the sub-category of portraiture. Some artists like Vincent van Gogh ended up leaving behind 30-odd self-portraits due to the lack of money
In Britain, Francis Bacon and Lucian Freud are known for taking the genre of portraiture (including self-portraiture) to another level with their experimentation and, in Bacon’s case, his outrageously peculiar expression. Freud, who painted a portrait of Queen Elizabeth (which the queen did not like very much), is known for his unique style which is divorced from the pursuit of realistic appeal in art and has leanings in bold brushstrokes on faces of subjects—characteristic of his portraiture oeuvre for which he is best known. Arguably, his best self-portrait is his 1985 work titled Reflection. The artist died with his unfinished work still wet on the canvas.
Frank Auerbach painted his first series of self-portraits in his 90s and his work was appreciated so much that an art critic called him the ‘Rembrandt of the 21st century’. Freud, whose best self-portrait is arguably Self-Portrait (2002), is famous for saying: “I don’t want to retire. I want to paint myself to death.” Self-portraits have been the occupation of several artists in their dotage. And their works reflect a state of mind inclined towards loneliness and weariness.
An artistic tool
Mirrors have played an important role in the development of the art of self-portraiture. The earliest known examples of obsidian mirrors were invented around 6200 BC in modern-day Turkey. The art flourished in Western Europe only after the Venetians perfected the workmanship of producing flat, foil-backed mirrors. During the Renaissance, the art of portraiture took off with artists such as Vasari and others producing remarkable frontal, naturalistic paintings of themselves as subjects. But it was not until the late 17th century that self-portraits became an established art form with several masters experimenting with it. Dutch artist Jan van Eyke who is credited for inventing oil paint that opened new avenues for artists in terms of expression and techniques as light, texture and detailing became works.
Regardless of the form it takes, the mirror is a crucial tool for artists to paint themselves, an important starting point when learning how to depict other features and figures. Mirrors have proved especially useful for artists who couldn’t afford or gain access to models, such as women artists who were barred from traditional art academies. Even artists from aristocratic background, like French post-impressionist artist Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, who painted scenes of French cafes, dances and the Moulin Rouge cabaret, is quite popular for his self-portrait before a mirror.
“As humanism came in and respect for the artistic profession rose in the early modern era, self-portraits also became important signatures to express artists’ identity and prestige. Early artists rarely showed the mirror in use, preferring to either erase or imply its presence by depicting themselves posed like any other sitter or gazing directly at the viewer. But those who did include it could pull the viewer into deeper questions about the work and what it means to look at someone’s inverted image. By looking at a painted reflection, we are reminded of the painter’s artistry, perspective, and power to shape what we see,” says Singh of Christie’s India.
A great example of mirror self-portrait is Freud’s celebrated 1965 work titled, Reflection with Two Children. This painting shows the towering reflection of the artist with a rather uneasy expression on his face against the cheerful portraits of two children (probably his own) at the bottom of the frame.
