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Self Portrait

Image credit: The National Gallery, London

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Paul Cézanne was about 40 years old when he painted this self portrait in Paris around 1880–1. He was now middle-aged with a family to support, and the intensity of his earlier self portraits has here given way to a more distant and reflective presence. Although relatively small, the portrait has a monumentality and authority to it. This was a significant period in the artist’s life, as he had stopped exhibiting with the Impressionist group after 1879 and was spending more time in the south of France, away from the capital. Cézanne stares at us calmly and dispassionately, his face devoid of overt expression. The wallpaper he poses before is not merely a decorative backdrop, but has an important structural role in the composition. By using elements of its pattern throughout the picture, Cézanne has fully integrated himself with his surroundings.

The National Gallery, London

London

Title

Self Portrait

Date

about 1880-1

Medium

Oil on canvas

Measurements

H 34.7 x W 27 cm

Accession number

NG4135

Acquisition method

Bought by the Trustees of the Courtauld Fund, 1925

Work type

Painting

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Normally on display at

The National Gallery, London

Trafalgar Square, London, Greater London WC2N 5DN England

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