Comparing Two Paintings: Rembrandts Self Portrait and Mona Lisa - Essay Example

Rembrandt’s Self Portrait in the national gallery is a very startling piece of painting work. This painting was done in the year 1656 by Rembrandt himself. The painting depicts the face of the painter in the upper two thirds of the canvas. The face of Rembrandt symbolizes some essence of sadness. This emanates from the hard looks and wrinkles evident on the facial expression. This shows that perhaps Rembrandt took a precise time in his life thinking and wondering about some issues in life that greatly stressed him up.

The element of stress is symbolized by the fact that he maintains a hard look on the face. In addition, the dark background of the painting also symbolizes dark history or perhaps bad experiences that Rembrandt faced in life. As such, the dark or bad experiences may also be symbolized by the code of Rembrandt’s dressing. The dark clothing worn by Rembrandt symbolizes the fact that the life of Rembrandt may have been characterized by several obstacles that have worsened his experiences. However, the face of Rembrandt is well illuminated.

This symbolizes the fact that however much the past experiences may have been dark and stressful, there is some hope in the future, however much little. Similar to Mona Lisa painting, the relaxed position depicted by Rembrandt symbolizes an element of self assurance. Both the paintings also employ dark codes of dressing that symbolizes dark histories of the past. On the other hand, Mona Lisa painting was completed in the year 1519 by the artist named Leonardo da Vinci.