Imagine how much people we are in this huge world and then think about this group of people known buy some names, making decisions that somehow effects each of us. We hear about them, talk about them, and watch them on the news today but in the past, when there was no television, no internet; people didn’t even know what the directors looked like.
People have been documenting their lives by different methods since ancient times. If we go back to the prehistoric times, to cave or rock paintings, we would learn a lot about the people, about their life styles, how they survived or how they communicated, what they believed in… They narrated the wars of their gods and generally painted their portraits. This habit continued in the art of the ancient civilizations of the Fertile Crescent, especially in Egypt, depictions of rulers and gods abound. Portrait painting of notables in China probably goes back to over 1000 B.C., though none survive from that age. Existing Chinese portraits go back to about 1000 A.D.
Court portrait of Emperor Shenzong of Song (r. 1067-1085), Chinese
From literary evidence we know that ancient Greek painting included portraiture, often highly accurate if the praises of writers are to be believed, but no painted examples remain. Sculpted heads of rulers and famous personalities like Socrates survive in some quantity, and like the individualized busts of Hellenistic rulers on coins, show that Greek portraiture could achieve a good likeness, and subjects were depicted with relatively little flattery. The successors of Alexander the Great began the practice of adding his head to their coins, and were soon using their own. Roman portraiture adopted traditions of portraiture from both the Etruscans and Greeks, and developed a very strong tradition, linked to their religious use of ancestor portraits, as well as Roman politics. Again, the few painted survivals, in the Fayum portraits(is the modern term for a type of realistic painted portraits on wooden boards attached to mummies from Roman Egypt), Tomb of Aline and the Severan Tondo, all from Egypt under Roman rule, are clearly provincial productions that reflect Greek rather than Roman styles, but we have a wealth of sculpted heads, including many individualized portraits from middle-class tombs, and thousands of types of coin portraits. Now coins and tombs are in my opinion the first time that portraits were used as a communicative tool for the present community.
In the middle ages, there were donor portraits, initially mostly of popes in Roman mosaics, and illuminated manuscripts. Between 1350-1400, secular figures began to reappear in frescos and panel paintings. Around the end of the century, the first oil portraits of contemporary individuals, painted on small wood panels, emerged in Burgundy and France, first as profiles, then in other views.
The Wilton Diptych of ca. 1400 is one of two surviving panel portraits of Richard II of England
The Renaissance marked a turning point in the history of portraiture. Partly out of interest in the natural world and partly out of interest in the classical cultures of ancient Greece and Rome, portraits—both painted and sculpted—were given an important role in Renaissance society and valued as objects, and as depictions of earthly success and status. Painting in general reached a new level of balance, harmony, and insight. There were many great artists in this period and they were supported by rich, noble families from different cities.
Albrecht Dürer, Self-Portrait, 1500
Hans Holbein the Younger, Portrait of Sir Thomas More, 1527
During the Baroque and Rococo periods (17th century and 18th century, respectively), portraits became even more important records of status and position. In a society dominated increasingly by secular leaders in powerful courts, images of opulently attired figures were a means to affirm the authority of important individuals. Flemish painters Sir Anthony van Dyck and Peter Paul Rubens excelled at this type of portraiture, while Jan Vermeer produced portraits mostly of the middle class, at work and play indoors.
Rembrandt group portrait, The Syndics of the Clothmaker’s Guild, 1662.
In the late 18th century and early 19th century, neoclassical artists continued the tradition of depicting subjects in the latest fashions, which for women by then, meant diaphanous gowns derived from ancient Greek and Roman clothing styles. The artists used directed light to define texture and the simple roundness of faces and limbs. French painters Jacques-Louis David and Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres demonstrated virtuosity in this draftsman-like technique as well as a keen eye for character. Ingres, a student of David, is notable for his portraits in which a mirror is painted behind the subject to simulate a rear view of the subject. His portrait of Napoleon on his imperial throne is a tour de force of regal portraiture.
The development of photography in the 19th century had a significant effect on portraiture, supplanting the earlier camera obscura which had also been previously used as an aid in painting. Many modernists flocked to the photography studios to have their portraits made, including Baudelaire who, though he proclaimed photography an “enemy of art”, found himself attracted to photography’s frankness and power. By providing a cheap alternative, photography supplanted much of the lowest level of portrait painting. Some realist artists, such as Thomas Eakins and Edgar Degas, were enthusiastic about camera photography and found it to be a useful aid to composition.
Other early 20th-century artists also expanded the repertoire of portraiture in new directions. Fauvist artist Henri Matisse produced powerful portraits using non-naturalistic, even garish, colors for skin tones. Cézanne’s relied on highly simplified forms in his portraits, avoiding detail while emphasizing color juxtapositions. Austrian Gustav Klimt’s unique style applied Byzantine motifs and gold paint to his memorable portraits. His pupil Oskar Kokoschka was an important portraitist of the Viennese upper class. Prolific Spanish artist Pablo Picasso painted many portraits, including several cubist renderings of his mistresses, in which the likeness of the subject is grossly distorted to achieve an emotional statement well beyond the bounds of normal caricature.
Henri Matisse, The Green Stripe, Portrait of Madame Matisse, 1905
By the 1960s and 1970s, there was a revival of portraiture. English artists such as Lucian Freud (grandson of Sigmund Freud) and Francis Bacon have produced powerful paintings. Bacon’s portraits are notable for their nightmarish quality. In May 2008, Freud’s 1995 portrait Benefits Supervisor Sleeping was sold by auction by Christie’s in New York City for $33.6 million, setting a world record for sale value of a painting by a living artist. Many contemporary American artists, such as Andy Warhol, Alex Katz and Chuck Close, have made the human face a focal point of their work. Warhol’s painting of Marilyn Monroe is an iconic example. Close’s specialty was huge, hyper-realistic wall-sized “head” portraits based on photographic images.
Andy Warhol, Marilyn Diptych, 1962, 2,054 cm × 1,448 cm., (809 in × 570 in), Tate Gallery, London
Portraits of Power
Finally, the reason why I wanted to do this summary about portraits in visual communication history. I found about this interactive portfolio of portraits by Platon of world leaders, with commentary by the photographer. I think this is a brilliant work and it’s fully communicative specially with the comments of the photograher. Every single person whom I have shared this link loved it and listened to the every single comment of every photograf. Since I am from Turkey, I’ m publishing the “leader” of this country: Recep Tayyip Erdoğan
You should definitely check out the portraits of other leaders and listen to the comments. There are different stories happening behind the frame. Don’t forget to read the text aswell.
Read more: http://www.newyorker.com/online/multimedia/2009/12/07/091207_audioslideshow_platon#ixzz0YwVrCcXe
