Self-portraits down the ages, from Rembrandt to Kim Kardashian the selfie queen, on show
New exhibition traces evolution of self-portrait as an artistic genre, and draws parallel with spread and popularity of smartphones
Rembrandt, Kim Kardashian and Andy Warhol make unlikely bedfellows at a photographic exhibition opening in London this week of the history of the selfie – from the Old Masters to the current day.
“From Selfie to Self-Expression” at London’s Saatchi Gallery celebrates “the creative potential of the selfie,” says Nigel Hurst, the gallery’s chief executive.
He says selfies are the epitome of the digital age and the show is billed as the first of its kind.
The exhibition examines how self-portraiture in painting evolved as mirrors gave an increasingly life-like image, particularly after the invention of silver-glassed mirrors in the early 19th century.
It draws a parallel with the growing sophistication and popularity of smartphones, setting out to “celebrate the truly creative potential of a form of expression often derided for its inanity”.
Works by the likes of Renoir, Cezanne and Monet are projected on TV screens with smartphones attached to allow visitors to “like” them as if on social media.
