Self-portrait

Have you heard of Hale Asaf? To be frank, I had not and that is a huge mistake. I blame it on my art history education focused on European art!

Hale Asaf, much like many female Turkish painters of her era, was born into an affluent Ottoman bourgeois family and grew up in a multilingual environment. In 1919, she embarked on a transformative journey to Rome, where she resided with her aunt, the celebrated painter and art teacher Mihri Rasim, and received her initial drawing instruction. Two years later, she gained admission to the Prussian Academy of Arts in Berlin. Due to financial constraints, however, she was compelled to return to Istanbul in 1924. Following her graduation and the award of a national scholarship for further European studies, she journeyed to Munich in early 1926, aiming to join Lovis Corinth's studio. Unfortunately, her aspirations were curtailed by the persistent health issues that would challenge her throughout her life. In 1931, Hale Asaf settled in Paris alongside her partner, the anti-fascist Italian author Antonio Aniante, and this vibrant period, marked by financial struggles, proved to be artistically fulfilling as she immersed herself in the intellectually stimulating Parisian art scene.

Having lived, trained, and worked in various cities and studios, Hale Asaf seamlessly blended an array of styles and techniques to forge her distinctive artistic identity, distancing herself from mere imitation to remain an independent artist. Her preferred subjects included self-portraits, portraits of her immediate circle, landscapes, and still-life compositions. Prominent, visible brushstrokes, vibrant colors, and geometric yet harmonious and naturalistic patterns characterized her works. Her portraits often divided backgrounds into contrasting planes of light and dark tones, dynamically conveying the sitter's emotions.

Tragically, Hale Asaf's life was cut short at the age of 33, leaving her paintings' whereabouts shrouded in mystery for an extended period. Today, these works predominantly reside in private collections.

P.S. If you would like to learn more about great women artists, please check out our Women Artists - 50 Postcards Set.  :)

P.P.S. Here are the 10 most famous self-portraits made by women artists. Do you know them all?