Philosopher with a mirror

Like most German artists, Schönfeld went to Italy when he was young, and worked with the greatest masters. This painting, with its assertive light and shade and its delicate technique, shows the predilection for philosophical themes in Neapolitan painting at the time. It takes us back to the Socratic maxim "know thyself". This painting is one of a series by the artist illustrating the five senses: here, the artist has represented sight.