Portraits of an artist as a human

Imagine Rembrandt, Vincent and Frida are journalling in their afterlives. In all likelihood, they would be creating fascinating visual diaries or picture books of self-portraits reflecting their still evolving souls. 

Rembrandt created 100 different versions of his face across 40 years. Frida painted over 50 pictures of herself because she was the subject she knew best. Vincent made close to 40 self-portraits of changing colour themes and facial expressions with backgrounds that often matched his mind patterns. 

Almost twenty of these self paintings are in Van Gogh museum alone. Others are displayed across Musée d'Orsay, The Met, Courtauld and The National Gallery of Art. All created in a span of 3.5 years. Starting in 1886 when Vincent moved to Paris and ending in 1890, with his death.

When he could not afford models in Paris, Vincent turned to the mirror. Self portraits were primarily his tools to explore and experiment with art. 

He studied new styles and changed colour pallettes from darker to lighter shades and used varied accompaniments such as a hat or a pipe or a pallette or, a bandaged ear. These portraits were often drawn on the back of other canvases with urgency and purpose,  often focused more on the creative aspects, facial expressions and moods rather than on exact physical likeness with the artist. It is said that Van Gogh's closest (also his personal favourite) portrait was not one among his own works but one done by John Russell. It read - "Vincent, in friendship." [below]

Vincent's self drawn portraits were mostly brightened up with complementary colours , except a couple early ones. Glass green eyes looking luminous with a dash of  red around it. Blue of his smock contrasting with the gleaming orange of his beard. Colours painted in dots, and dashes, and radiating resplendent thick brushstrokes and patterns that almost moved inside the frame with energy while his face mirrored stability, calm, depth.

His many selves, his many souls, as he lived many lives in one with difficult and changing emotions, manifested in these pictures. Swirls in the background expressing his tumultous mind patterns, bolder brighter brushstrokes expressing his grit as he battled with mental health ailments at Saint Rémy's. These portraits sometimes showed a sensitive, vulnerable human, sometimes a brilliant, brave artist. Sometimes both. 

And his eyes. With that intense gaze and endless depth, and sadness. The eyes in his portraits never look very far, often at the onlooker, creating a connect and evoking emotions. With Vincent in the foreground and motifs of his mind in the background, it is as if we are looking at him through shattered glass refracting bright colours. Or a turbid lens of a world that never quite understood his soul. 

[all portraits included above were photographed at the Van Gogh museum in March 2024. some of the works were on exhibition hence unavailable.

a near full set of Vincent's self-portraits can be seen here.]

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tailpic.

miss r's vincentesque self-portrait with her mind whorls of confusion and a big ear peeping through the hairdo.