Selbstbildnis mit steifem Hut (Self-Portrait in Bowler Hat) 1921

This is Max Beckmann’s self-portrait, etched in monochrome sometime in the first half of the 20th century. Look at that sharp, wiry energy! You can really see Beckmann thinking through the process. What I love about this print is its brutal honesty, emphasized by the stark contrast between light and dark. The etched lines are raw, exposed. The whole surface is a network of marks, cross-hatching building up tone. Notice the density of lines around his eyes, which create a real sense of depth, and the more sparse lines defining the hand that sits in the foreground. That hand feels so open, so present. It’s a formal device to pull us into the picture plane. Beckmann’s stark self-portraits remind me of other German artists like Otto Dix and Kathe Kollwitz, who embraced printmaking as a medium for direct and unflinching social commentary. It’s that idea that art doesn’t have to be ‘beautiful’ to be powerful. That it can be a space for working through really difficult emotions.