Expressionist self-portrait

Beginning with birth, the face serves as the primary gateway of one's communication with the external world. First inklings of a soul, among them memories and secrets, all reside somewhere in the face's myriad manifestations. Objects of anatomical interest and probing to artists in the first instance, the body and face have gradually become "canvases" on which to represent expression. This thesis offers a study of the self-portait genre in the Expressionist period by focusing on its historical development, stages, and prominent examples. The thesis seeks to broadly examine changing attitudes to face with a focus on expressionist portraiture, as well as express, with the art work produced, the subjective manifestations of the subject explored.