Wednesday 6/26/2024
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Throughout the history of the plastic arts, it is possible to find self-portraits of painters who are very particular. Examples of this are Vincent Van Gogh with a bandaged ear, Frida Kahlo with her hair cut, and Felix Nussbaum with a Jewish passport, which exposes Nazi brutalities during World War II. But the most striking, especially if you take into account that they were made in 18th century France, are those of Joseph Ducreux, who was born on a day like today, June 26, 1735.
Louvre Museum
Why are the works of this artist inspired by his own physiognomy so picturesque, even after two and a half centuries? Firstly, because Ducreux is represented with dramatic and exaggerated facial expressions, which contrasts with the more formal portraits of the time. He is portrayed surprised, laughing, mocking or scared, often in theatrical poses or unusual postures, which give rise to humor, since they parody the seriousness that 18th century portraits used to have.
Wikimedia Commons
Ducreux’s inclination towards the humorous and the extravagant never meant leaving aside attention to detail and realism in the execution of his works, which evidence solid technical preparation. It is possible that the best known of the extensive series is “Self-portrait yawning”, from 1783. The specialist Miguel Calvo Santos points out in this sense that “the freedom and sense of humor with which he treats a genre that had certain restrictions are evident.” ”. Regina Sienra, in an article published by My Modern Art, indicates that these self-portraits, which are exhibited in museums such as the Getty Center and the Louvre, “stand out among other 18th-century portraits for their relaxed and more human approach.”
Wikimedia Commons
But Ducreux’s story is not limited only to these works, which in any case gave him guarantees of immortality. His life and work are embedded in the mud of the turbulent time in which he lived. He learned from his father, a renowned sculptor, the rudiments of the profession and perfected his technique in Paris. Over time, he refined his style, until he was able to capture in his portraits, with precision, the personality of those represented.
The J. Paul Getty Museum.
He worked in the court of Louis XVI and carried out works for prominent figures of the French court. Chronicles indicate that in 1769 he was sent to Vienna to make a miniature portrait of Marie Antoinette of Austria, before she became the aforementioned monarch’s wife. Despite this, he managed to survive the complex years of the French Revolution. He continued working until his death, which occurred in 1802 at the age of 67.
Wikimedia Commons
The curious thing is that Ducreux’s work regained strength about fifteen years ago, around 2009, when someone decided to take a copy of “Portrait de l’artiste sous les traits d’un moqueur” (Portrait of the artist with the traits of a mocker). and place the phrase “Disregard Females, Acquire Currency”. “From there – as Lisandro Pardo points out – the website did the rest. Ducreux’s unorthodox portraits crossed the Internet at full speed, creating thousands of variants of the original meme. Therefore, it is possible that many of the readers of these lines know Ducreux and have seen her work on the screen of their phones or computers, without knowing her story.
