Self-portrait

The self-portrait of Vytautas Kasiulis created during his Freiburg period stands out for its original composition. The realistic self-portrait of the artist in the bottom right corner of the painting has been incorporated into a typical artist’s studio environment, a “painting within a painting”, with a background consisting of lying women’s scenes and portrait sketches, which were some of Kasiulis’ favourite motifs for a working artist. The artist’s self-portrait has been painted with a light, expressive stroke. The severe light spots and deep shadows accentuate the individual features of the artist’s face and his stern expression. The canvas’ background has been painted in fine, smooth, multi-coloured strokes, creating the impression of a shimmering air pocket, in which the contours of objects melt away, and shapes are enveloped by a light fog. The painting is of loose, brownish colours, enriched with shades of yellow, green and ochre.