Self-Portrait 1927

Curator: Here we have Eric Gill's Self-Portrait, housed at the Tate. It's a lithograph, measuring roughly 18 by 12 centimeters. Editor: It looks so...stiff. The beard is wonderful, but the hat—or whatever that angular thing is—feels oppressive. Curator: Observe how the rigorous lines articulate form and shadow. Gill employs hatching and cross-hatching to give volume to his features. The beard, as you noted, serves as a focal point, contrasting with the geometrical hat. Editor: It's like he's deliberately flattening himself, hiding behind these severe lines and shapes. I'm not getting much 'self' out of this. Curator: Perhaps the 'self' is revealed through the very act of reduction, of distilling identity to its most fundamental graphic elements. Editor: Maybe. Or maybe he just had a really bad day and didn't want to show it. Either way, it gives you a lot to consider.