Self-Portrait

In the pictureThe painter, seen from the chest up, turns his shoulders to the left and shifts only his eyes to look out at us. His orange hair, rust-red beard and pale, greenish face stand against a dark blue work smock. A little of a white shirt shows beneath the smock's collar. The background is the same blue, but long, thick brushstrokes curl around the outline of his head and shoulders, creating a halo-like texture around his body. In the lower left corner, a hand holds a palette and several brushes, with yellow, blue, green and pink paint squeezed onto the palette.

BackgroundIt was painted in 1889 at the Saint-Paul-de-Mausole asylum in Saint-Rémy, in the south of France. Van Gogh had left Arles that spring and admitted himself to this asylum, and he painted this picture while recovering from a severe attack. He left 36 self-portraits, and this is one of the last of them. By portraying himself with a palette and brushes, he shows that he was continuing his work as a painter even while ill. Mr. and Mrs. John Hay Whitney bought it in 1947, and it was given to the National Gallery of Art in Washington in 1998.

Puzzle tipThe face and hair are the easiest place to start. The orange hair, red beard and greenish face stand out clearly against the blue. Next come the palette and the dabs of paint at the lower left. The hard part is the background and the smock, which continue in similar blues: in the background the brushstrokes curve around the head, while in the smock they run up and down along the folds, in a darker color mixed with green lines. Use the direction of these brushstrokes to tell the two apart. 100 pieces is recommended.