Self-portrait. 1828. H., m. 48. 5h42. 3. GTG Orest Adamovich Kiprensky (1782-1836)

Description of the painting "Self-Portrait" by Orest Kiprensky

The portrait was painted in 1828.

This painting can tell us a lot about the artist. In front of us is a man with a strong-willed face. He is dressed in an oriental striped robe. The face is shaded by a bright white collar.

The strokes are so magnificent that the surface seems to be mirrored. The viewer wants to pay attention to all the subtleties of this portrait, to consider the smallest features of shades and understand the role of every detail.

The artist is looking directly at us. Most likely, he has portrayed himself at the moment when he is creating. An incredible work of thought can be read in all the facial features. Kiprensky chose to portray himself in a domestic setting. He appears to us a bit dapper.

The painter painted the eyes very masterfully. We can see that they are a bit reddish. It is the look of a man who is incredibly tired. It is as if he wants to ask something. In the folds of his lips there is a duty smile, which for some reason seems a little pathetic.

This is the confession of a tired toiler. You can sense that he himself is afraid of the dullness that is clearly readable not only in his eyes, but in his entire face. The portrait shows the features of anxiety and some kind of incomprehensible unease. Kiprensky conveys them as definitively as possible from a psychological point of view.

If in earlier self-portraits of the artist one could feel romantic tension, here it completely disappears. In all his features one can sense a kind of disappointment. Kiprensky knew that he could pick up the movements of life and look keenly into it. Here, it’s as if he completely forgives life for being so harsh.

At this time, the artist was experiencing the deepest depression. Viewers can even read a certain fear of the artist in the self-portrait. The painter’s efforts were not appreciated. Viewers can read in the eyes of the character the painter’s bitterness at not being understood.