Portrait of Pieter de Jode the Younger 1606 - 1674

This is a self-portrait of Pieter de Jode the Younger, an engraver from Antwerp, made sometime in the 17th century. De Jode comes across as relaxed and confident. He wears a decorative collar and a draped jacket, with his arm resting on a ledge, perhaps to suggest his sophisticated life as an artist. De Jode was part of a flourishing artistic community in Antwerp. As the son of a well-known engraver, Pieter de Jode the Elder, he had connections and opportunities that were not available to everyone. The inscription at the bottom tells us that he apprenticed with his father and then spent time in Paris engraving for Monsieur Bon Enfant. The portrait then, becomes a kind of advertisement, a display of the artist's talents and credentials. However, it also humanizes him, by capturing a certain interiority. The gaze is direct, but there's also a hint of vulnerability, the suggestion of a life lived through art. This interplay of public persona and private experience captures something essential about the artistic identity of the time.