Silhouettes

Silhouette is a portrait of your profile which is cut from the black paper and it represents a shadow of your face. Cutting portraits, generally in profile, from black card became popular in the mid-18th century, though the term “silhouette” was seldom used until the early decades of the 19th century, and the tradition has continued under this name into the 21st century. From its original graphic meaning, the term “silhouette” has been extended to describe the sight or representation of a person, object or scene that is backlit, and appears dark against a lighter background. The word “silhouette” derives from the name of Étienne de Silhouette, a French finance minister who, in 1759, was forced by France’s credit crisis during the Seven Years War to impose severe economic demands upon the French people, particularly the wealthy. Because of de Silhouette’s austere economies, his name became eponymous with anything done or made cheaply and so with these outline portraits. Prior to the advent of photography, silhouette profiles cut from black card were the cheapest way of recording a person’s appearance. A traditional silhouette portrait artist would cut the likeness of a person, freehand, within a few minutes. Now silhouette portraits is a rare and unique art form. Leo’z Arts continues traditional way of cutting these “black shadow” portraits. Using only scissors and sharp artistic eye we transform black paper in a shadow portrait of your face! After cutting the picture from your photo we mount it on the mat and it’s ready to be framed. Get a custom silhouette of your profile today!!!