Self-Portrait, Yawning (Main View)The J. Paul Getty Museum
Joseph Ducreux, Self Portrait, Yawning, 1783
Joseph Ducreux was born in 1735 and found worldwide fame in the 2010s for his almost unique portraits. The exaggerated expressions and gestures piqued the interest of the Internet, and his paintings have become memes.
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Self Portrait, Yawning is held at the Getty Center, Los Angeles, USA. Home of the Getty Villa, the Getty Research Institute, and the J. Paul Getty Museum. The Center was designed by American architect Richard Meier, known for his clean, geometric lines, and use of white.
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The museum holds thousands of paintings, sculptures, and artefacts dating from the classical era to the modern day. But we're looking only for one! Click and drag to explore the museum, it's not far from here!
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*Yawwwnnn* thank goodness we found it, I was beginning to get tired. I'll just sit down for a moment…
Self-Portrait, Yawning (Main View)The J. Paul Getty Museum
Joseph Ducreux, Self Portait, Yawning, 1783
Ducreux's portrait looks strange today, and certainly would have at the time. He was a believer in physiognomy - that the shape of peoples faces and their beauty, or ugliness, would reveal their true inner selves.
I think Ducreux is… sleepy
But he wasn't alone in this style of art. A century earlier, many Dutch painters made grotesque satirical portraits known as tronies, and before them, Leonardo da Vinci was an avid drawer of vicious caricatures.
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Thanks for joining us on today's scavenger hunt! There's a lot more to see at the Getty Center, so take your time and explore the museum.
