Introduction for a 6th grade self-portraiture lesson

1. Amedeo Modigliani
Haunting elongated, mask-like portraits.

2. Family & Early Life
● Born into a Jewish family in Livorno,
Italy
● His family was persecuted for their
religion, grandmother came to Italy
for religious freedom
● Mother, Eugenie, was fluent in many
languages, founded a talmudic study
school
● Father, Flaminio was a businessman
and engineer
“He behaves like a spoiled child, but he does not lack
intelligence. We shall have to wait and see what is
inside his chrysalis. Perhaps an artist?”
-Eugenie Garsin
Modigliani’s birthplace, Livorno, Italy

3. Art School
● At 14, Modigliani had typhoid
fever and raved that he wanted to
see the paintings in Palazzo Pitti
and Uffizi in Florence.
● When he was well, his mother
took him to Florence, and enrolled
him with the best painting master
in Livorno, Guglielmo Micheli.
● He worked in Micheli’s Art school
from 1898 to 1900.
● He was heavily influenced by
artwork of the Renaissance.
● 1902 - studied in Florence at the
Academia di Belle Arti
The Tuscan Road, 1899
The Bearded Man,
1905

4. Literary Influences
● He read constantly, and was
most interested in philosophical
works of Nietzche, Baudelaire,
Carducci, and Comte de
Lautreamont.
● He developed the belief that the
only route to true creativity
was through defiance and
disorder.
● He was most interested with
figure drawing at this time.
● He embraced the bohemian
lifestyle and radical
philosophies.

5. Paris
● In 1906, Modigliani moved to Paris,
the center of the Avante-Garde
movement.
● At the same time, Gino Severini and
Juan Gris had also moved to Paris.
● He settled in Le Bateau-Lavoire, a
commune for poor artists in
Montmartre, and rented a studio in
Rue Caulaincourt.
● Modigliani decorated his studio with
heavy drapes and Renaissance
reproduction paintings and was seen
to wear brown corduroys, a scarlet
scarf, and a large black hat.
Head of Woman with a Hat, 1907

6. Working in Paris
● Modigliani worked at a fast pace,
making as many as 100 drawings a
day.
● He was influenced by Henri
Toulouse-Lautrec and Paul
Cezanne.
● His parisian friends called him Modi
(which translates to “cursed”)
● He had many relationships with
women, but ultimately fell in love
with Jeanne Hebuterne, an art
student.
● Her parents did not approve of
Modigliani because he was Jewish.
Paul Cezanne, Peasant, 1891
Toulouse-Lautrec, Jane Avril, 1892

7. Developing Style
The Jewish Woman, 1908 Jean Alexandre, 1909

8. Developing Style
Portrait of Paul Alexander on Green Background,
1909
The Beggar of Livorne, 1909

9. Signature Style
Portrait of a Young Girl 1910 Portrait of Paul Alexander, 1912

10. Signature Style
Madame Pompadour, 1914 Andre Rouveyre, 1915

11. Signature Style
Bride and Groom, 1915 Portrait of Henri Laurens, 1915

12. Portraits of Artist Friends
Portrait of Diego Rivera, 1914 Portrait of Frank Burty Haviland,
1914

13. Portraits of Artist Friends
Portrait of Picasso, 1915 Portrait of Juan Gris, 1915

14. Portraits of Artist Friends
Portrait of Jean Cocteau, 1917 Portrait of Chaim Soutine, 1917

15. Jeanne Hebuterne
Jeanne Hebuterne in Red Shawl, 1917 Jeanne Hebuterne with Hat and Necklace, 1917

16. Jeanne Hebuterne
Jeanne Hebuterne, 1918 Jeanne Hebuterne, 1918

17. Jeanne Hebuterne
Jeanne Hebuterne in a large hat, 1918 The Artist’s Wife, 1918

18. Jeanne Hebuterne
Jeanne Hebuterne, 1919 Jeanne Hebuterne, 1919

19. Late Portraits
Girl in a Sailor’s Blouse, 1918 Leopold Zboroski, 1918

20. Late Portraits
Lunia Czeckowska with her left hand on
her cheek, 1918
Pierre Edouard Baranowski, 1918

21. Late Portraits
Jeanne Hebuterne with her left arm
behind her head, 1919
Young Man with Cap, 1919

22. Modigliani’s Death
● Modigliani died on January 24, 1920 of
tubercular meningitis (then incurable)
● He died penniless, having had only one solo
exhibition in his life.
● He gave his artwork away in exchange for
meals in restaurants.
● Since his death, nine novels, a play, a
documentary, and three feature films have
been devoted to his life.

23. Modigliani’s Style
● Elongated neck and face
● Curving, rounded poses
● Flattened faces, with
eyebrows that slope to
meet the edges of the nose.
● Eyes that are filled with
color, no iris or pupil
definition
● Sometimes heavily
outlined, sometimes
delicately shaded
● Simple backgrounds, marks
from paintbrush are visible
Portrait of Man with Hat, 1915
Portrait of a Woman in a
Black Tie, 1917
Head of a Girl, 1918

24. Making Elongated Self-Portraits
Examples from: Deep Space Sparkle

25. Today’s Studio Session
● Thumbnail sketches are small, simple drawings that fill up a page with ideas. They are
not complete or very detailed! This is like a visual brainstorm.
● Sketch at least 5 different possibilities for your self-portrait in your sketchbook. Add hats
and other accessories, practice using different facial expressions, and consider adding an
arm or hand gesture.
● Next week, we will use your favorite sketch as the basis for a large oil-pastel drawing.