Art Institute of Chicago

Self-Portrait

Henri Fantin-Latour

Date

1857

Medium

Black chalk, with charcoal and stumping, on blue laid paper, laid down on cream laid paper, perimeter mounted to gray board

Culture

France

Department

Prints and Drawings

Institution

Art Institute of Chicago

Among Fantin-Latour’s portraits, the most penetrating are those he made of himself. This is an early attempt, created when he was just 21 years old, and may reflect the influence of Edgar Degas, whom he had met just two years previously. As with many young artists, the most available model could be found in the mirror, fostering many such brooding images bursting with potential.

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