Self-portrait 1911

Fedir Krychevsky made this self-portrait, we don't know when, using oil paint. Look at the way he's built up the image with these decisive brushstrokes, how the colours mingle to create depth and texture! I imagine Krychevsky standing before the mirror, palette in hand, really *seeing* himself—the weight of his gaze, the set of his jaw. You know, painting a portrait is such an intimate act, like having a conversation with yourself. He is working in a tradition of painters looking at themselves, from Rembrandt to Van Gogh. I wonder if he felt the weight of that history as he painted. There's a real softness in the way he's rendered the light on his face, but also a boldness in the application of paint. See that dab of violet on his lapel? It's these small details that give the painting its life. It reminds me that we painters are all in conversation, picking up where others have left off, inspired by their courage and vulnerability. It is a lineage, an ongoing conversation that goes beyond mere imitation.