Description
Book SynopsisOffering a rich and lively history, this is an essential read for all those interested in this most enduringly popular and humane of art forms.
Trade Review'Wide-ranging, richly researched and evocatively illustrated … It is as varied, revelatory and idiosyncratic as the genre which it takes as its subject' - The Times
'Fascinating, erudite and beautifully produced' - Sunday Times
'Enthralling … Scattering insights on all sides, Hall’s narrative advances through the centuries with masterly vigour' - Observer
'Stimulating … Hall writes with energetic freshness … a highly engaged book that raises many questions about this intriguing and still-active genre. It deserves to be widely read' - Literary Review
'Spirited … the book’s readability and the depth of research give it an engaging pace that makes it especially refreshing' - The Art Newspaper
'There is never a dull passage in this book ... Hall manages to retain the intellectual high ground while writing with verve and enthusiasm ' - Frances Spalding, Guardian
'Lively ... Hall's range of reference is polymathic and his writing often pithy' - Daily Telegraph
'A stimulating and demanding book that requires an equally serious engagement from any reader ... There's no questioning the scholarship that lies behind this book' - The Spectator
'Hall's boundless curiosity explodes in all directions from the relatively few pages he has been allocated. Mostly we want more: more detail, more explanation and many more pictures. Given that this is a chunky and well-illustrated volume, that is meant as high praise' - Andrew Marr, New Statesman
'Hall's writing is not only accessible for a general audience, but filled with notable insights, including spicy, prurient ones' - The Daily Beast
'A graceful, sure-footed exposition, both authoritative and entertaining, of a long thread in cultural history ... I was hooked' - Carcassone
'A textured biography of the genre, where familiar works cohabit easily with esoteric ones, veined by richly-detailed, penetrating observations' - Sunday Business Post
'Exceptionally rich in detail' - Good Book Guide
'Detailed and informative ... a serious and scholarly work that nevertheless retains the reader's interest and attention and is generously and thoughtfully illustrated' - Art Book Review
'Beautifully designed ... (Hall) delivers original and engaging interpretations' - RA Magazine
Table of ContentsIntroduction • Prelude: Self-Portraiture in Antiquity • 1. Medieval Origins • 2. A Craze for Mirrors • 3. The Artist in Society • 4. The Renaissance Artist as Hero • 5. Mock- Heroic Self-Portraits • 6. The Artist’s Studio • 7. At the Crossroads • 8. Coming Home: Into the Nineteenth Century • 9. Sex and Genius • 10. Beyond the Face: Modern and Contemporary Self-Portraits
