Prager Selbstbildnis

Künstler*in Bohdan Heřmanský (1900 Königgrätz/ Hradec Králové – 1974 Prag)

Object typeGemälde
MediumOil on canvas
Dimensions
44 × 60,5 cm
SignatureMonogrammiert und dat. links unten: B.Hy / 30
Inventory number3179
Locations Oberes Belvedere
Bohdan Heřmanský, born Theodor Herzmansky in Bohemia, grew up in Vienna. He quickly made a name for himself in Austria and was one of the leading members of the Nötsch Circle. Even after the disintegration of Austria-Hungary into many individual nations and his own stays in Stockholm, Siena, and Paris, he retained an attachment to the culture of the former multi-ethnic state. In 1929 he finally moved to Prague, which features in many of his paintings. This selfportrait also shows him on a town square with a colorful row of houses in the background. His right hand is tipping his hat in greeting, and his gaze is fixed on the viewer. A black-and-white mask juts into the picture on the left, almost more lifelike than the geometric forms of the artist’s expressionless face.