About the Artwork
Beckmann often represented himself in disguise or costumed to express his own view that life is a series of roles to be played. In this late self-portrait, the artist seems to have shed disguise: unsmiling, he stands plainly dressed, close behind an easel. The figure is rendered in the strong black outlines characteristic of Beckmann’s rather flat painting style. Tight space presses in around the figure, conveying a claustrophobic sense that underscores Beckmann’s physical presence and close proximity. His gaze is challenging, but it also creates a sense of immediacy in its directness.
Self Portrait in Olive and Brown
1945
Max Beckmann
1884-1950
German
Unknown
Oil on canvas
Unframed: 23 3/4 × 19 5/8 inches (60.3 × 49.8 cm) Framed: 31 5/8 × 27 1/4 × 2 3/8 inches (80.3 × 69.2 × 6 cm)
Paintings
European Modern Art to 1970
Gift of Robert H. Tannahill
55.410
Copyright not assessed, please contact [email protected].
Markings
Signed and dated, lower right: Beckmann, A 45
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Provenance
1955-present, gift to the Detroit Institute of Arts (Detroit, Michigan, USA)
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Provenance pageExhibition History
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The exhibition history of a number of objects in our collection only begins after their acquisition by the museum, and may reflect an incomplete record.
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Max Beckmann Paintings from 1939-1946. Exh. cat.,Buchholz Gallery. New York, 1946, no. 12.
Max Beckmann. Exh. cat., Albright Art Gallery. Buffalo, 1947, no. 8.
Max Beckmann. Exh. cat., Benno Reifenberg and Wilhelm Wausenstein. Munich, 1949, no. 566 (pl. 74).
European Masters of Our Time. Exh. cat., Museum of Fine Arts. Boston, 1957, no. 7.
Max Beckmann. Exh. cat., Museum of Fine Arts. Boston, 1964, no. 59.
Bulletin of the DIA 35, 1 (1955-1956): pp. 18-19 (ill.).
Gehardus, M. and D. Expressionismus. Freiburg, Germany, 1976, p. 107, no. 73 (ill.).
Uhr, Horst. Masterpieces of German Expressionism at the Detroit Institute of Arts. New York, 1982, p. 44 (ill.).
Zenser, Hildegard. Max Beckmann: Selbstbildnisse. Munich, 1984, p. 151 (pl. 51).
Zenser, Hildegard. Max Beckman. Munich (fig. 50).
Masterpieces from the Detroit Institute of Arts. Exh. cat., Bunkamura Museum of Art. Tokyo, 1989, no. 85 (ill.).
Rainbird, Sean, ed. Max Beckmann. Exh. cat., Musee National d'Art Moderne. Paris, 2002, p. 237.
Cumming, Robert. ART A Field Guide. New York, 2001, p. 27 (ill.).
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Credit Line for Reproduction
Max Beckmann, Self Portrait in Olive and Brown, 1945, oil on canvas. Detroit Institute of Arts, Gift of Robert H. Tannahill, 55.410.
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