Zelfportret van tekenaar Johannes Ziesenis 1780s - 1790s

Editor: Here we have Johannes Ziesenis' "Self-Portrait of the Draughtsman," created sometime between 1780 and 1790, a drawing rendered in pencil. The monochromatic palette creates a somewhat serious, reflective mood, but it's also almost a caricature. How do you interpret this work? Curator: What I see is an intriguing dialogue between the self and the era. Ziesenis, by choosing the mode of caricature, adopts a recognizable form, loaded with symbolic weight. But why self-caricature? It's not merely about visual distortion; it's a commentary. What kind of cultural anxieties or societal critiques do you think Ziesenis might be hinting at through this personalized exaggeration? Editor: It's interesting that you frame it as anxieties! It hadn’t occurred to me. It's as if he’s aware of his flaws and is almost highlighting them. Was self-deprecation a common theme in Neoclassical art? Curator: Not in the heroic mode we often associate with Neoclassicism, no. This perhaps leans into the enlightenment's fascination with the self, observed, analyzed, but also, presented. The act of creating a "self-portrait caricature" inherently acknowledges the gap between how one perceives oneself and how one is perceived by society. Do you notice any particular features that stand out? Editor: His nose and perhaps his open mouth are the most prominent. Is there a message he is passing through these? Curator: It brings us to an examination of symbols. The prominent nose is it a conscious adoption of comedic characterization that points back to a tradition of mockery or even social critique? As for the open mouth, is he about to speak? Is this artist's statement a vocal declaration, about to be unleashed on the world? Editor: I hadn't thought about it as him making some pronouncement. So much to consider within such a simple sketch! Curator: Indeed! And, as we continue to look, perhaps Ziesenis invites us to inspect not just *him*, but ourselves and our own self-representation within our societal narratives. The simple sketch, we see, it isn’t that simple.