Self-portrait

Mary Beale was the most professionally active female painter in 17th-century England, running a successful portrait practice in London from the 1670s through the 1690s. Her 1678 Self-Portrait is a document of remarkable confidence — a woman who had established herself commercially and artistically in a competitive male-dominated field. Beale was a close associate of Peter Lely and absorbed his manner while developing her own more intimate and psychologically direct approach.

Beale presents herself in informal dress with a composed, intelligent directness. Her face is modeled with the confident technique she had developed through sustained practice. The handling is warmer and more intimate than the Kneller style, reflecting the Lely influence and her own tendency toward psychological honesty.