Silhouette Portraits
Friday, August 24th, 2007
Please don’t forget the auction Sept. 16-22 for Ava Grace. To read more about her and the auction, rx that will help her get the help she needs, salve here is her link
Just recently I have grown to love silhouettes. I saw this reproduction one in an antique shop. I just loved it, salve and bought one for me, and one for Carole’s Country Store. It’s beautifully done, looks so old. It comes with a litte wire stand, so you can set it on your desk or table.
Before photography was invented, our ancestors had portraits of themselves taken sideways. They were known as silhouette portraits. These portraits were cut out of thin black paper and stuck on a white card. Men were seen in the streets of Boston and other large cities, who for a penny, would cut a silhouette portrait of anyone who would be willing to stand for the time it took to make it. Depending on the artistic ability, these portraits would be great likenesses, or poor ones. In still earlier days, they were done differently, where the person who wanted to silhouette made of their likeness, sat before a screen with a light nearby, on the other side of them. This would create a clear shadow on the screen. The outline would be traced on the screen, and from this would be transfered mechanically, on a small scale, to a sheet of black paper, cut out and mounted on a card. This one is extremely unusual. Before I found this one, i thought all silhouettes were only done in black, actually most of them are and that’s what makes this one so special. The detailing is amazing, and I love the colored flowers and the tie around her bonnet.
If you would like to learn more, here is an interesting link about silhouette artists. As always, thanks so much for stopping by. Please don’t leave without a comment. I love hearing from you. Take care.