The Self, the Hare, and the Hands
Three examples of how Albrecht Dürer used observation, without preconception, as a tool for scientific and philosophical discovery
Albrecht Dürer was a precocious talent and whilst still in his teens produced drawings that masters would try to outbid each other for, so they could learn by copying his mark-making techniques. He went on to become one of the first celebrities of art and made his name into a recognisable ‘brand’, prominently signing his work with his ‘AD’ logo.
Part of his self-promotion was a series of self-portraits produced through his twenties. Dürer is given credit for introducing this discipline to art. Other artists had used themselves as visual reference and included their own likeness in historical scenes, but none had used themselves as the sole subject of a proper, professionally finished, painting. I mean, what patron would want such a thing?
Dürer produced several self-portraits, of which the last, painted in 1500 when he was aged 28, is considered to be the finest and most enduring in its appeal. It is a ‘slick’ work in graphic terms, in which he shows himself against a flat black background with text to either side of his head at eye level. His right hand enters the frame from the bottom to sensually stroke the fur of his…
