Copper Self-portrait with Dog
Object Details
- Date
- 2001
- Artist
- Susan Hauptman, 1947 - 18 Jul 2015
- Sitter
- Susan Hauptman, 1947 - 18 Jul 2015
- Exhibition Label
- For Susan Hauptman, the exploration of selfhood was a long-term artistic quest. Like so many of her self-portrayals, Copper Self-Portrait with Dog appears purposefully disjointed. The hyperrealism of the dog and the mid-twentieth-century skirt and hat contrast with the folk-naive rendering of the feet and the mismatched proportions. Juxtaposing the ultra-feminine ruffles and flowers with a masculine, nearly hairless head creates a disturbing disparity. The whimsical costume, with its canine "accessory," appears comical at first glance, but the confronta- tional pose and serious expression deny laughter. Even Hauptman’s beautiful, meticulous technique stands in stark contrast to rougher, seemingly unfinished portions of the drawing. While Hauptman questions gender stereotypes and draws upon self-portrait traditions of dressing up and masquerading, she does not do so to impersonate others or to reinvent the self. The constant pairing and contrasting seems instead to be an exploration of dualities within herself that coexist with creative tension.
- Para Susan Hauptman, la exploración de la propia individualidad fue una misión artística de muchos años. Como tantos de sus autorretratos, Copper Self-Portrait with Dog está intencionalmente desarticulado. El hiperrealismo en la ejecución del perro, la falda y el sombrero de mediados del siglo XX contrasta con el estilo popular-naíf de los pies y las proporciones incongruentes. La yuxtaposición de los femeninos volantes y las flores con una cabeza masculina, casi sin pelo, crea una disparidad inquietante. El fantasioso vestido, con su "accesorio" canino, parece cómico a primera vista, pero la pose desafiante y seria inhibe la risa. Incluso hay contraste en la técnica: bella y meticulosa en ciertas partes, cruda y al parecer inacabada en otras. Hauptman cuestiona los estereotipos de género a la vez que cita la tradición retratista de vestirse especialmente o disfrazarse, pero no lo hace con intención de imitar a otro o reinventarse. El juego constante de combinar y contrastar parece más bien ser una exploración de las dualidades que coexisten en tensión creativa dentro de ella.
- Topic
- Costume\Headgear\Hat
- Nature & Environment\Animal\Dog
- Self-portrait
- Susan Hauptman: Visual Arts\Artist
- Susan Hauptman: Female
- Portrait
- See more items in
- National Portrait Gallery Collection
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Credit Line
- National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; gift of an Anonymous Donor
- Data Source
- National Portrait Gallery
- Object number
- S/NPG.2006.108
- Type
- Drawing
- Restrictions & Rights
- Usage conditions apply
- Copyright
- © Estate of Susan Hauptman, courtesy Forum Gallery, New York City
- Medium
- Pastel with copper leaf on paper
- Dimensions
- Sheet: 250.8 x 103.8cm (98 3/4 x 40 7/8")
- Frame: 264.5 x 114.9 x 8.3cm (104 1/8 x 45 1/4 x 3 1/4")
- Metadata Usage
- Usage conditions apply
- Record ID
- npg_S_NPG.2006.108
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