Bridge Over the Abyss. Great Masters

What came first – man or mirror? This question is posed by Paola Dmitrievna Volkova in the fourth volume of the "Bridge Over the Abyss" series. For great masters, a portrait has always been more than just an image of a person; it is also a mirror reflecting not only external but also internal beauty. A self-portrait is a question to oneself, a reflection, followed by an answer. Diego Velazquez, Rembrandt, El Greco, Albrecht Dürer, and Vincent Van Gogh – they all leave us with a bitter confession of a whole life in this genre. At which mirrors did the beauties of yesteryear adorn themselves? Venus, risen from the waters, saw her reflection in them and was pleased with herself, while Narcissus – stood frozen forever, stunned by his own beauty. The canvases, reflecting in the Renaissance only the ideal image, and later – the personality of a person, became eternal mirrors for anyone who dares to look into them – like into an abyss – truly.