WOMEN AT THE MIRROR

One of most famous ideas of Jacques Lacan (psychoanalyst, psychiatrist and philosopher) is called ‘The Mirror Stage’ – a moment in life, when a person looks in the mirror and identifies self with the reflected image. The reflected image is a sort of perfect version of the self, a version that we aspire to be. Enjoy these 7 women looking in the mirror – great artworks through the centuries:

1.Venus and the Mirror – Painted by Jan Gossaert, French-speaking painter also known as Jan Mabuse. Gossaert is first mentioned in Antwerp in 1503. He was one of the first artists to introduce the style of the Italian Renaissance into the Low Countries. His Venus is kind of mythlogical painting.

2.Woman with a Mirror and Venus with a mirror Woman with a Mirror – Is a painting by Titian, dated to 1515. Now it can be seen in the Museum of Louvre. It is known to have been in the Gonzaga family’s collection in Mantua. The cloistered lives of prostitutes were the subject of some of Lautrec’s most powerful. Venus with a Mirror (painted about 1555) is said to celebrate the ideal beauty of the female form, or to be a critique of vanity, or perhaps both. It is now in the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC and it is considered to be one of the collection’s highlights.

3.Before the Mirror – Edouard Manet’s 1876 painting Before the Mirror depicts the sumptous life style of Balzac’s archetype of the decadent and wanton courtesan. He was interested in representing the truth of French society, in a manner that captures the flavor and feeling of the subject’s lives. It is on view in Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York.

4.Woman Before Mirror – Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec painted in 1897 Woman Before Mirror, where as if woman appears to be taking a stark appraisal of herself. This work is considered in terms of the erotic in Picasso’s art.

5.Woman at a mirror and The Scarlet Ribbon – Woman at a mirror and The Scarlet Ribbon are famous artworks by Théophile “Théo” van Rysselberghe from 1907. He was a Belgian neo-impressionist painter, who played a pivotal role in the European art scene at the turn of the century.

6.Girl Before a Mirror Girl Before a Mirror – Is the masterpiece by Pablo Picasso painted in 1932. The young girl was named Marie Therese Walter and was painted multiple times by Picasso. Picasso through this painting justifies her nature by interpreting all the possible emotions and feelings of the young woman. The woman’s face is painted with a side profile and a full frontal image. One side shows the day time, where she seems more like a woman, with her make up done. The other side portrays her at night. When she takes off the mask of makeup and is more vulnerable as a young lady. Picasso painted this during his cubism period.

7.Girl at the Mirror – In 1954 Norman Rockwell captured the poignancy and uncertainty of growing up on his painting Girl at the Mirror. The mirror represents the male gaze, while the reflection represents the ideal image, which the woman should aspire to. Sometimes the female figure is posing for the male mirror, seeing herself reflected in him.

The intellectual property of the images that appear in this blog correspond to their authors. The sole purpose of this site, is to spread the knowledge of these painters and that other people enjoy their works. To pursue this issue, you can digit: http://meetingbenches.com/2017/03/painting-women-mirror-mirror-represents-male-gaze/