Gustave Courbet, The Violoncellist, 1847, oil on canvas.“In his many self-portraits, Gustave Courbet
Gustave Courbet, The Violoncellist, 1847, oil on canvas.“In his many self-portraits, Gustave Courbet reinvented his own image, casting himself in roles as diverse as poet, troubadour, and peasant. In this instance, he imagines himself as a musician. Cello technique requires the bow to be held in the right hand, even by left-handed players. The reversal of this standard in the painting indicates that the artist studied his image in a mirror.Courbet painted two versions of The Violoncellist. It seems likely that the Portland painting was made first. X-rays of the canvas show that Courbet altered the figures position and gestures. Also, the musical score was painted on another canvas and inserted into the composition. The other version, in the National Museum of Art in Stockholm, lacks the musical score, but was almost certainly based on this Portland version.”Located in the Portland Art Museum. -- source link
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