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Self-Portrait
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The muted dark tones and somber gaze in this self-portrait convey the anxieties Armand Guillaumin was facing in the early 1870s. While working full-time for the French railway system, he devoted early and late hours and weekends to his artistic practice and endured rejection from the Salon, the official juried annual art exhibition in Paris. Guillaumin shared close friendships with Paul Cezanne, Camille Pissarro, and Vincent van Gogh (whose works are on view in this gallery) and participated in six of the eight Impressionist exhibitions. This self-portrait shows the artist on the verge of establishing his career.
| Artist / Maker | Armand Guillaumin |
|---|---|
| Date | c. 1872–74 |
| Culture / Origin | France, 19th century |
| Medium | oil on canvas |
| Dimensions | Unframed: 45.4 x 37.5 cm (17 7/8 x 14 3/4 in.) |
| Department | Modern European Painting and Sculpture |
| Type | Painting |
About the Artist
Armand Guillaumin grew up in a working-class family and spent much of his childhood in Moulins. In 1857 he was sent to Paris to become a clerk in his uncle's lingerie shop. He quickly entered a municipal art school and three years later, hoping to find more time to pursue his interest in art, left his uncle's shop and took a position at the Paris-Orléans railway. His free time was still limited, however, and although he made studies of the… Full biography →
Provenance & Source
Image & data: Cleveland Museum of Art, CC0 / Public Domain.
Condition
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