Self Portrait 1888

Curator: Let's turn our attention to this "Self Portrait" painted by Vincent van Gogh in 1888. Editor: There’s a striking intensity in his gaze; almost unsettling with the slightly sickly green cast of the background. Curator: That green, however, speaks volumes about the paints available at the time. Chrome green was newly accessible due to industrial advancements and a departure from the more expensive handmade materials used previously by artists from more affluent backgrounds. Editor: Right, and consider how Van Gogh uses complementary colors – the browns and greens – to make his features pop. The structure itself—that vortex-like brushwork—adds to the psychological impact, imbuing movement and life. It is clearly within the post-impressionistic style in its visible brushstrokes. Curator: The speed and the apparent ease of the marks belie the mental effort needed, and perhaps reveal the economic pressures of this period on the artist. Also of importance are Van Gogh's various relationships with his suppliers who helped in enabling his material exploration within painting at this time. Editor: You point to that influence as well, but for me it emphasizes Van Gogh's deliberate engagement with visual tension, particularly through the use of texture to convey emotion and, perhaps, an interior landscape. It makes it an iconic representation of the modern, self-aware artist. Curator: Precisely, he understood the labor inherent within materials, how something becomes readily "art" through its materiality but only by its creation through labour; even with mental health considerations within artistic professions. Editor: It certainly does go beyond visual art; his handling of color is fascinating from purely a formalist point. Curator: And looking beyond form, that color demonstrates advances and changes in manufacture as well! Editor: Quite insightful about production and manufacture of art as commodities. Curator: And insightful when looking at formal means of analysis, too, right?