Painters

The beret has always been the headgear of choice for painters; this began during the Renaissance and revived in the early 20th century.

At first, the beret was simply a practical hat (without an annoying peak that gets in the way).

Over time however, the beret became so much associated with painters and the arts, that it became a symbol and artists wore the beret as it seemed to be the right thing to do.  

Nowadays, the association is so strong that people often ask me, wearing my beret, if I'm an artist...

Better still, a kid at my daughter's primary school years ago, asked me if I was the man who painted the Eiffel Tower!