Elena Rossi
Vincent van Gogh is known to have created at least 24 self-portraits, with some sources placing the number at 32 or even 35. The majority of these were completed during his time in Paris (1886-88), where he often lacked the funds to pay for models. Van Gogh's self-portraits are renowned for their expressive, thick impasto brushwork and compelling use of complementary colours. They have been reproduced countless times and continue to inspire artists today.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Number of self-portraits | 32-35 |
| Years during which self-portraits were painted | 1886-1890 |
| Locations where self-portraits were painted | Paris, Arles, Saint-Rémy, Auvers-sur-Oise |
| Number of self-portraits painted in Paris | Over 25 |
| Number of self-portraits painted in Paris (alternative source) | 24 |
| Number of self-portraits painted in Saint-Rémy | 150 (total number of paintings created that year) |
| Medium of self-portraits | Oil on canvas, oil on artist's board, oil on pasteboard |
| Dimensions of self-portraits | Various, e.g. 42 x 31 cm, 62 x 52 cm |
| Museums and collections featuring self-portraits | Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam; Fogg Art Museum, Cambridge, MA; Private collections; Courtauld Institute Galleries, London; Musée d'Orsay, Paris; The National Galleries of Scotland, Edinburgh; The Art Institute of Chicago; Nasjonalmuseet, Oslo |
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What You'll Learn
Van Gogh produced over 25 self-portraits in Paris (1886-88)
Vincent van Gogh is now considered one of the art world's most recognised painters. His painting career lasted only about ten years, from 1880 to 1890, but he produced an impressive body of work, including over 2,000 canvases and drawings. Van Gogh's massive oeuvre includes numerous self-portraits, which have been reproduced countless times since the early 20th century.
Van Gogh produced over 25 self-portraits in Paris between 1886 and 1888. This prolific output of self-portraiture was due in part to financial constraints, as the artist often lacked the money to pay for models. To save money, he sometimes painted self-portraits on the back of other paintings, thus avoiding the cost of expensive canvases.
Van Gogh's self-portraits from this period reflect his response to Georges Seurat's revolutionary pointillist technique, as seen in Seurat's "A Sunday on La Grande Jatte—1884". Van Gogh's densely dabbed brushwork and intense emotional language contrast with Seurat's cool objectivity. The surface of Van Gogh's paintings comes alive with particles of colour—intense greens, blues, reds, and oranges.
Van Gogh's self-portraits during his Paris years also reveal the influence of Impressionism, Symbolism, Pointillism, and Japanese art. His early work in the Netherlands was dark and heavy, but after moving to Paris, he adopted a lighter palette and expressive brushstrokes to capture light and movement. The signature Van Gogh yellow and blue combination, as well as his more classical painting techniques, can be seen in his portraits from this period.
Van Gogh's self-portraits provide insight into his mental state at the time. In a letter, he described the last self-portrait he painted in Paris as 'quite unkempt and sad', reflecting how he felt mentally and physically exhausted. This self-portrait was likely one of the last ones he painted before his series of mental breakdowns, which began with him cutting off his left ear in December 1888.
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He painted on the back of other paintings to save money
Vincent van Gogh is considered one of the art world's most recognised painters. His painting career lasted only about ten years, from 1880 to 1890, yet he created a massive body of work comprising over 2,000 canvases and drawings. Van Gogh's oeuvre includes landscapes, still lifes, portraits, and self-portraits, most of which are characterised by bold colours and dramatic brushwork that contributed to the rise of expressionism in modern art.
Van Gogh produced his self-portraits because he wanted to practise painting people. The majority of them—over 25—were done while he was in Paris (1886–88). He was short of money during that period and struggled to find models. So, to save money, he painted self-portraits, acting as his own model. To save even more money, he sometimes painted self-portraits on the back of other paintings, thereby avoiding the cost of a model and an expensive canvas.
Van Gogh was known to often reuse his canvases or work on their reverse to save money. In one instance, he painted a self-portrait on the back of a study for The Potato Eaters, which he had made earlier in Nuenen. In another instance, he painted a self-portrait on the back of a study for The Parsonage Garden at Nuenen.
In total, Van Gogh made 35 known self-portrait paintings in the last four years of his life, when he was between 33 and 36 years old.
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Van Gogh's self-portraits were an important part of his work
Vincent van Gogh is known to have created at least 24 self-portraits during his two-year stay in Paris, with over 25 self-portraits produced during the years 1886–88. He often lacked the money to pay for models, so he chose to paint himself. Van Gogh also reused canvases or worked on their reverse to save money. This meant that he avoided the cost of a model and an expensive canvas.
Van Gogh's self-portraits also reveal the importance of the new pointillist technique pioneered by Georges Seurat. Van Gogh used the coloured ground as an extra layer to the painting method, leaving spaces for the eye to move and contrasting colours to feel like the background is made of hundreds of fireflies. This can be seen in his self-portrait from 1887, which is now at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam.
Van Gogh's self-portraits have been reproduced an infinite number of times since the early 20th century. They have also inspired many artists, such as the French artist Guillaume Bruère, who frequently works in situ to make drawings of artworks that he admires. Van Gogh's self-portraits put a face to the man who became the archetype of the artist as a tortured genius.
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He painted himself because he couldn't afford models
Vincent van Gogh is considered one of the greatest painters of all time. His painting career lasted only about a decade, from 1880 to 1890, and he struggled with poverty and mental illness throughout this period. Van Gogh's massive body of work comprises over 2,000 canvases and drawings, including 35 known self-portrait paintings, all completed in the last four years of his life.
Van Gogh's self-portraits were often a result of necessity. He painted himself because he couldn't afford models or struggled to find them. Van Gogh lived in poverty and spent most of the money he had on painting materials. He wrote to his brother, Theo, that he could only remember eating six hot meals between May 1885 and February 1886. His staple diet during this period was bread, coffee, and tobacco.
Van Gogh also had difficulty finding people to model for him. In 1885, one of his young peasant sitters became pregnant, and he was accused of forcing himself upon her. After this incident, the village priest forbade parishioners to model for him. As a result, Van Gogh could only afford to hire people from the street as models, a practice that did not sit well with his mentor, Mauve.
To save money, Van Gogh sometimes painted self-portraits on the back of other paintings. By doing this, he avoided the cost of a model and an expensive canvas. The majority of his self-portraits—over 25—were done while he was in Paris, where he practiced using new, lighter hues and different painting techniques. Van Gogh also believed that painting would help him heal. He wrote to Theo, "I retain all good hope."
Van Gogh's self-portraits have been reproduced countless times since the early 20th century and have inspired many artists. They have contributed to his mythologization as the quintessential tortured artist.
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Van Gogh's self-portraits have inspired many artists
Vincent van Gogh is known to have created at least 25 self-portraits, with some sources placing the number at 35 or even 36. He produced the majority of these works while he was in Paris between 1886 and 1888. During this period, van Gogh was short of money and struggled to find models, so he chose to paint himself. To save money, he sometimes painted self-portraits on the back of other paintings, thereby avoiding the cost of a model and expensive canvas.
Van Gogh's self-portraits are an important part of art history, as they provide insight into his creative process and demonstrate how various artistic styles can be combined and transformed into something new. His use of colour in these works is both unique and captivating. He often employed a muted colour scheme, which lends an air of introspection to the works, and used bright colours to create dramatic contrasts between light and dark. Van Gogh's swirling brushstrokes add a sense of movement to the paintings, further heightening the emotive impact of his work.
The influence of van Gogh's self-portraits is evident in the works of later generations of artists. Many famous artists, including Pablo Picasso and Mark Rothko, have cited his paintings as a source of inspiration for their own work. Van Gogh's ability to emotionally connect with his audience has made him one of the most celebrated painters in history. His expressive, thick impasto brushwork, compelling use of complementary colours, and the emotional power of his paintings have inspired countless artists over the years and will likely continue to do so for many generations to come.
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Frequently asked questions
Vincent van Gogh painted at least 24 self-portraits, with some sources placing the number at about 32. The majority of these—over 25—were done while he was in Paris (1886–88).
Vincent van Gogh painted his self-portraits between 1886 and 1890. All 35 of his known self-portrait paintings were completed in the last four years of his life when he was between 33 and 36 years old.
Vincent van Gogh painted self-portraits because he wanted to practice painting people. He often lacked the money to pay for models, so he chose the simplest solution and painted himself.
