Self-Portrait with a Straw Hat (obverse: The Potato Peeler)

Vincent van Gogh

1887 · Oil on canvas · European Paintings

Van Gogh produced more than twenty self-portraits during his Parisian sojourn (1886–88). Short of funds but determined nevertheless to hone his skills as a figure painter, he became his own best sitter: "I purposely bought a good enough mirror to work from myself, for want of a model." This picture, which shows the artist's awareness of Neo-Impressionist technique and color theory, is one of several that are painted on the reverse of an earlier peasant study.

Artist

Vincent van Gogh

Date

1887

Medium

Oil on canvas

Department

European Paintings

Credit line

Bequest of Miss Adelaide Milton de Groot (1876-1967), 1967