Artwork
Self-Portrait
Self-Portrait is an ink print by the Romanticist artist Johann Andreas Benjamin Nothnagel. It dates from 1770 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
About this work
Overview
This etching on laid paper is a self-portrait by Johann Andreas Benjamin Nothnagel, a German Jewish painter active in the late 18th century.
Subject & Meaning
The print depicts a seated figure, possibly the artist, holding a tool and a piece of paper or fabric, wearing a fur-trimmed coat. Nothnagel's works often represented Jewish cultural and religious figures, sometimes as imaginary portraits later linked to historical individuals.
Technique & Style
The artist employed etching, a technique involving acid-drawn lines on metal plates, to achieve precise details such as the texture of fur and fabric folds. The resulting black-and-white image features sharp lines, particularly around the hands and face, against a plain background.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Johann Andreas Benjamin Nothnagel
Johann Andreas Benjamin Nothnagel (1729–1804) was a German Jewish painter who painted famous paintings of Jewish rabbis and leaders.
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Élisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun
Dorothée Louise Viedebandt (The Artist's Wife)
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Young Girl at the Keyboard
Young Girl at the Keyboard