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Deeply emotional, The Desperate Man is among the earliest works by the artist that he completed in 1845. With his eyes wide-open, Courbet is staring straight at you and tearing his hair. Popular at the time, the Romantic approach to portraiture was concerned with expressing emotional and psychological states of the individual.
Nov 20, 2018 · The famously overwrought self-portrait The Desperate Man (1843–45) by the French Realist Gustave Courbet remained in the artist’s studio until his death. In the modestly sized painting, the 24-year-old stares wild-eyed out at the viewer, his hands tearing at his flowing, unkempt hair.
Le Désespéré (Desperation or The Desperate Man) is an oil-on-canvas self-portrait by Gustave Courbet, produced in 1843–1845, early during his stay in Paris.
- Introduction
- Style
- Description
- Analysis
- Self Portraiture
- Influences
- Size and Medium
- Location
- Exhibitions
- Gustave Courbet's Self Portraits
By the time that he produced this self portrait, it is believed that Gustave Courbet had been rejected several times by the Salon in Paris for other artworks and so the image found in front of us here reflects entirely his frustrations at the time. For someone to have such a strong self-belief and yet still come up short was hard for him to handle....
The lighting and his desperate expression in this portrait are the memorable features of all and this dramatic composition may remind some of the work of Caravaggio and Rembrandt. Courbet was forced into exile many years later and took this painting with him, underlining the fondness that he felt for it. It can now be found in the Conseil Investiss...
In this piece the lighting flows in from the left hand side, flooding the artist's face on his right. His long hair hangs loosely and the position of his hands gives an impression of anxiety, perhaps even panic. Notice how his left hand is tightly stretched, with the balance of the light helping to draw out every subtle detail of his body. His eyes...
This popular piece has been examined many times by art historians. Different conclusions have been drawn, with some pointing to this being an expression of the artist's personality, whilst others have suggested that actually it was less about mood, but much more about bringing the viewer and the subject closer together. He would, for example, creat...
No other form of art genre can tell us as much about the artist himself than self-portraiture. Famous artists such as Courbet often have had complex characters and this types of paintings, in addition to any quotes available from their life, is the best way of understanding more about what they did in their careers and why. The comparisons with som...
Courbet is known to have particularly appreciated the work of José de Ribera, Zurbaran, Velazquez and Rembrandt. He would spend time in the Louvre Museum in Paris, studying their work by eye and also sitting further back to sketch various elements of their compositions - whichever technical elements that stood out to him at the time. Some artists h...
This self portrait was relatively small, measuring 55cm in width by 45cm in height, or 21 5/8 by 17 3/4 inches. We do know that Courbet kept this artwork within his studio for many years and perhaps would not have been able to had it been much larger. Naturally,The Desperate Man (Le Désespéré) was completed using oil on cavas, which was the standar...
The Desperate Man (Le Désespéré) is now owned by the Conseil Investissement Art BNP Paribas as part of a private collection. As a result, the painting cannot normally be viewed in person but has, on occasion, been loaned out for temporary art exhibitions elsewhere. The organisation is headquartered in Paris, France, and so the painting itself may w...
As mentioned elsewhere, this painting is rarely seen in public but has featured in several exhibitions. An exciting exhibition that was devoted entirely to Gustave Courbet was held at the Musée d’Orsay from October 13th, 2007 to January 28th, 2008. It would later move on to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York and the Musée Fabre, Montpellier, ...
Gustave Courbet once described himself as the proudest and more arrogant man in all France. His self-obsession inevitably led to a number of self-portraits appearing within his career. His body of work in this sub-genre can also be described as varied, in terms of the different styles of compositions. The Desperate Man is memorable because of how c...
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Dec 13, 2023 · Inspired by a true story, Invincible recounts the last 48 hours in the life of Marc-Antoine Bernier, a 14-year-old boy on a desperate quest for freedom.
Feb 10, 2024 · Courbet, known for his unwavering commitment to capturing the human condition, offers an unflinching exploration of the depths of human emotion. The Desperate Man becomes an embodiment of our collective struggles, illustrating the pain, suffering, and existential crises that often plague our lives.
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Gustave Courbet (French, 1819–1877) The Desperate Man, 1844–45. Oil on canvas; 17 3/4 x 21 5/8 in. (45 x 55 cm) Private Collection, courtesy of Conseil Investissement Art BNP Paribas. The Wounded Man. Hide caption. Begun in the mid-1840s, this self-portrait underwent a series of transformations.
