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Thursday, February 19, 2015

Long before the Selfie

Can you imagine life before the selfie- like way before cell phones... How did we manage?

I am not going to lie, life before having a smartphone was pretty terrible! (A life my four year old will never know.) I mean nowadays you can just whip your phone right out and BAM!- THERE'S A SELFIE. Nope, delete that one. Take a few more and finally you have one you can post to social media, right?

Selfies existed long before there was a term for them- artists and photographers call them self portraits. "Taking" a selfie didn't used to be so easy. Especially 170 years or so ago before photography! If you wanted a portrait of yourself you either sat in front of a mirror or something reflective and painted or drew it or someone else made it for you.

These masters should be easily recognized by their selfie style. Their self portraits have similar techniques to the artworks they are famous for.

Can you identify these artists by their selfie style?

From left to right, top to bottom:
The Rehearsal c. 1873-78
The Starry Night c. 1889

Waterlilies, c. 1916-1923


Young Lady in Green, c. 1927

Morning Sun, c. 1952

The Old Guitarist, c.1903

The Night Watch, c.1642

After the Bath, c. 1901

The Luncheon of the Boating Party, c. 1880-1881

 
Marilyn, c.1962 

These self portraits display lots of character and richness that our modern day selfies lack.  Luscious brush strokes, exaggerated lighting, hard lines and vibrant colors. What can you do to capture your personality and style in your selfie? Have you ever painted or drawn your portrait? Show me your creations #selfiestyles Check back soon for my selfie style!

Check out these funny Museum Selfies.

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