Self-Portrait (with Cows) 1796

Editor: This is "Self-Portrait (with Cows)" by Jean Jacques de Boissieu. It's a print, and I'm struck by how the artist depicts himself alongside the tools and products of his trade. What do you see in this piece? Curator: The printmaking process itself becomes the subject. Boissieu foregrounds the means of production: the paper, the ink, the printing plate. The inclusion of the cow landscape print suggests a commentary on artistic labor and the market for such images. Editor: So, it's not just a portrait, but a statement about the artist's role in society? Curator: Precisely. We see the artist as both creator and producer, embedded in a system of materials and exchange. The classical bust and quill further underscore this tension between craft and "high art." Editor: That makes me see it differently, as a reflection on the material conditions of artmaking. Curator: Indeed. It prompts us to consider how artistic identity is constructed through the very act of making and selling art.