Self-Portrait Wearing Glasses 1775

Jean-Baptiste-Siméon Chardin created this self-portrait in 1775 using pastels. The soft, muted tones give the image a gentle, almost dreamlike quality, which invites a sense of intimacy and reflection. Chardin's approach to composition here is quite striking. Note how he uses the framing of his spectacles and the soft contours of his hat and scarf to draw our attention to the central theme of perception. The glasses act as a visual metaphor, highlighting the act of seeing and self-examination. What is revealed by the gaze, and what is obscured? Through the semiotic lens, the textures—the velvety pastels, the subtle gradations of light and shadow—become signs in themselves, alluding to the artist’s meticulous observation and rendering of reality. It destabilizes the traditional grandiosity of portraiture, favoring instead a focus on the everyday, elevating the ordinary into the realm of the profound. The texture and tone of the pastel medium underscore a sense of immediacy and sensory experience, qualities that not only define the artwork's aesthetic appeal but also its deeper engagement with the viewer's own perceptual processes.