Albrecht Dürer
Self-Portrait with Fur-Trimmed Robe, 1500
Lindenholz (Tilia sp.), 67,1 x 48,9 cm
Erworben 1805 durch die Zentralgemäldegaleriedirektion
Inv. Nr. 537
Self-Portrait with Fur-Trimmed Robe
With this painting Dürer, then 28 years old, created one of the most unusual works in portraiture history. The frontality and the strong idealization are reminiscent of representations of Christ, both aspects however being inseparable from Dürer's early studies of human proportion. His gaze and his hand, representing an artist's tool, are emphasized, rendering the painting an inventively programmatic. This is accentuated by the Latin inscription that underscores the work of the painter: "Thus I, Albrecht Dürer from Nuremberg, portrayed myself with characteristic colors in my 28th year."