The Portrait in the Semiosphere of the Home

Abstract

The subject of analysis in this article is the function of portraits placed in the semiosphere of the house, primarily the family nest. The author of the article, referring to the works of Yuri Lotman and other representatives of the Moscow-Tartu semiotic school, builds three possible typologies of home portraits: from the point of view of the “hero” depicted in them, the applied stylistic convention, and his semantic-pragmatic functions. During the first typological analysis, firstly, commemorative portraits of family members, relatives, and acquaintances are singled out, and, secondly, portraits of historical figures and artists, including writers, are considered. The second typological analysis reveals the stylistic codes used in creating portraits: ceremonial, sentimental, realistic, eclectic, playful, etc. The purpose of the third typological analysis is to determine one or another effect of the portrait on the viewer, e.g. cult, memoir, comic, tragic, cathartic, etc.