| dc.description.abstract | The department of Western painting in Tokyo Bijutsu Gakko was founded in 1896. It collects the graduate works of all the students since then, and one of the appointed subjects is self-portraiture. Before Second World War, the first generation of Taiwanese western painters who studied in Tokyo Bijutsu Gakko also donated their self-portraits to the school. These paintings are the early self-portraits in Taiwanese art history. European artists start to make self-portraits since fifteenth century, and the works play different roles through the course of time. They could be seen as the signature or the experiment of the artists, and they could be interpreted from the perspective of identity and psychoanalysis. Moreover, in the self-portraits, spectators could see the process which the artists investigate themselves. There is no clear record on why self-portraiture becomes the appointed subject of graduate work in Tokyo Bijutsu Gakko. This thesis would trace the question back to Kuroda Seiki (1866-1924), who directed the program in department of Western painting, and discuss the possible meanings of self-portrait as graduate work. The materials are from the collections of Tokyo Bijutsu Gakko in early twentieth century to nineteen-thirties. I would investigate the change of styles of self-portraits in late Meiji period (1898-1912), Taishō period (1912-1926), and early Shōwa period (1926-1936). Most of the works of Taiwanese students are influenced by Impressionism, which is taught in the academy. Even though Modernism has been introduced to Japan consistently, students from Taiwan didn’t absorb it in an active way. The cause of this phenomenon could link to the timing they went to Japan and their personal choices. Also, by studying the artists’ careers and the complex situation of Taiwanese art in Japanese colonial period, I would speculate on the reason why they have reservation about Western avant-garde, and therefore construct their own styles.
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