Self-Portrait c. 1890

Editor: Here we have Camille Pissarro's Self-Portrait. It's a print, undated, but held at the Harvard Art Museums. It feels incredibly intimate. What strikes you about this piece? Curator: The radical embrace of artistic self-representation and the role of the artist is so important historically. Consider the rise of Impressionism, and the way artists like Pissarro challenged academic traditions. How does this self-portrait engage with that sentiment? Editor: I see his direct gaze as a challenge to the viewer. Curator: Exactly! It invites us to reconsider the artist's role in society, moving away from idealized representations towards a more personal and immediate form of expression, reflecting the changing social dynamics of the time. Editor: That gives me a lot to think about. Thanks! Curator: My pleasure!