Durer
Artist and Humanist, Albrecht Durer is one of the most significant figures in the history f European art outside Italy during the Renaissance (Gowing 195). Portraying the questioning spirit of the Renaissance, Durer's conviction that he must examine and explore his own situation through capturing the very essence of his role as artist and creator, is reflected in the Self-portrait in a Fur Collared Robe (Strieder 10). With the portrait, Durer's highly self-conscious approach to his status as an artist coveys his exalted mission of art more clearly than in any other painting. He seems to be less concerned with himself as a person than with himself as an artist, and less with the artist than with the origin and exalted mission of art itself. (Strieder 13). In this self-portrait Durer portrays himself in the guise of the Savior. Durer's natural resemblance to Christ has been reverently amplified (Hutchinson 67). His bearded face is grave, and fringed by lustrous shoulder-lenth hair painted in a dark, Christ-like brown (Russell 89. Scholars have called attention to the fact that, the portrait was intended to portray Durer as the thinking artist through emphasis on the enlarged eyes and the right hand. Duere's use of the full-face view
Durer was deeply religious, troubled by rebellions and abuses he witnessed within the church. To further fulfill his spiritual role, Durer pledged to write one last instructional book entitled Food for Young Painters in which he would hand down all his knowledge and experience as his legacy to those able young men who love art more than silver and gold (Russell 161). And he had painted his own image in everlasting colors, desiring the hand down an undying image to posterity (Strieder 14). Albrecht Durer believed that his artistic mission reflected that of Christ. Ironically, the self-portrait did more than preserve his image; it helped foster the popular characterization of Durer as a Christ-like master, aloof and awe-inspiring. He wrote in the Introduction to his Painter's Manual, For the noblest of man's senses is sight. There is no doubt that Durer's thought and art were affected by the powerful reforming spirit of the age (Hutchison 164). This was a personal verification of the quality of his materials and his craftsmanship.
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Acceptance Essays
