Self-Portrait

Malvin Gray Johnson, Self-Portrait, 1934, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Harmon Foundation, 1967.57.30
Malvin Gray Johnson, Self-Portrait, 1934, oil on canvas, 38 1430 in. (97.276.2 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Harmon Foundation, 1967.57.30
Free to use

Artwork Details

Title
Self-Portrait
Date
1934
Dimensions
38 1430 in. (97.276.2 cm.)
Credit Line
Gift of the Harmon Foundation
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on canvas
Classifications
Subjects
  • Portrait male — Johnson, Malvin Gray — self-portrait
  • Occupation — art — painter
  • African American
Object Number
1967.57.30

Artwork Description

In Self-Portrait, Malvin Gray Johnson addresses the viewer with hat in hand and a somber gaze. By placing his painting Negro Masks (1932) in the background, Johnson presents his own face as a mask among others. Collapsing foreground and background, he uses modernist techniques to assert his identity as a modernist painter.  

Works by this artist (2 items)

Malvin Gray Johnson, Self-Portrait, 1934, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Harmon Foundation, 1967.57.30
Self-Portrait
Date1934
oil on canvas
On view
Malvin Gray Johnson, Brothers, 1934, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Harmon Foundation, 1967.57.29
Brothers
Date1934
oil on canvas
Not on view