Self-portrait 1560

This is Bartolomeo Passerotti's self-portrait, an oil on canvas piece measuring 42.5 by 28 centimeters. Immediately, one notices the stark contrast between the ruff and the dark doublet, framing the artist’s face. Passerotti’s formal emphasis on the face, achieved through the use of light and shadow, directs our gaze. The composition is structured around the tension between the softness of the facial features and the geometric precision of the ruff, which seems almost like a halo. The use of chiaroscuro gives depth, but the artist’s gaze is direct, challenging. In the context of the 16th century, self-portraits were a statement of identity. Passerotti’s attention to detail and the interplay of light and shadow suggests a concern not just with representation, but with the very act of seeing and being seen. This interplay elevates the work beyond a mere depiction of likeness, turning it into a discourse on the nature of perception.