[MR] BBC: Cateriana van Hemessen Self-portrait

[Garth Groff and Sally Sanford]

Noble Friends,

I just ran across this fascinating analysis of Caterina van
Hemessen's 1548 self-portrait, claimed by the article to be the earliest
known self-depiction of an artist at their own easel. Not only is the
portrait significant in its own right, but the article claims that there
are several hidden meanings and visual tricks hidden in the image. And it
is a delightful painting of a charming young lady.

Enjoy the painting and the story at
https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20210305-caterina-van-hemessen-an-unknown-visual-pioneer
.

And who was this talented young woman artist, a painter most of us have
probably never heard of? Well, she was Flemish, and the daughter of noted
artist Jan Sanders van Hemessen, who was also likely her tutor. She enjoyed
a successful career as a portrait painter, and enjoyed the patronage of
Maria of Austria. Just ten of her paintings survive, five of them featured
in this Wikipedia bio-sketch:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catharina_van_Hemessen .

Yours Aye,


Lord Mungo Napier, Laird of Mallard Lodge  🦆