Albrecht Durer

Albrecht Dürer was the most famous artist of Reformation Germany—

widely known for his paintings, drawings, prints, and theoretical writings
on art, all of which had a profound influence on 16th-century artists in his
own country and in the Lowlands.

His woodcuts and engravings made him famous across Europe and he
is still considered to be the greatest printmaker of all time. As an oil
painter, Duerer was equally successful at religious and secular subjects,
producing magnificent altarpieces and powerful portraits. His drawings
and watercolours are impressive for their diversity of subject-matter and
the varied media in which they were produced.

however, the self-portraits of Duerer that give us the greatest insight into
his character and beliefs. The first, drawn when he was just 13, depicts
the soft features of a young boy, sketched with great confidence and skill

Modern Art History has reinforced this ideology with its

construction of the narrative of art around the work of
identifiable artists whose styles are seen as manifestations of
 the respective artists' unique
personalities. Self-Portraits
of artists like Rubens,
Rembrandt, and Van Gogh
are major monuments in this
cult of artistic individuality.
Where traditional narratives
of Art History have explicitly
or implicitly assumed the
emphasis on artistic
individuality beginning in the
Renaissance as the
"natural".

The earliest self-portrait we have of Dürer is a remarkable

silverpoint drawing he did in 1484 when he was thirteen years
old. This portrait is frequently paired with what is perhaps a
self-portrait of Dürer's father, a goldsmith:

The elder Albrecht Dürer, shown holding a piece of his

goldsmith work, represents himself as a craftsman. Compare
this representation to our discussion of Rogier van der
Weyden's painting of St. Luke Drawing the Virgin:
 Self-Portrait,
1491, Louvre,
Paris.
.

Self-Portrait, 1498, Prado, Madri

Self-Portrait, 1500, Alte Pinakothek, Munich.
Detail of the 1500 Self-Portrait.

This one is a close up of his eyes from the one above.