Self-Portrait
Medium
pen and black ink on two sheets of card stock
Dimensions
sheet (irregular): 9.68 × 6.19 cm (3 13/16 × 2 7/16 in.)
Classification
Drawing
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of William and Abigail Gerdts
Accession Number
2018.44.28
Art Historical Context
William Merritt Chase’s *Self-Portrait* of 1909 offers an intimate glimpse into the artist’s later years through a remarkably compact drawing. Executed in pen and black ink on two joined sheets of card stock, the work measures just under four inches tall, its irregular edges suggesting a spontaneous, personal study rather than a formal commission. The choice of simple ink on modest card stock highlights Chase’s mastery of line and economy of means, allowing subtle modeling and expression with minimal materials. As a drawing rather than a painting, this piece underscores Chase’s lifelong inter...
About the Artist
William Merritt Chase
Prolific painter of portraits, interiors, still lifes and landscapes, famed for establishing the fresh colour and bravura technique used in much early 20th-century American painting. He was considered the most important American teacher of his time; after teaching at the Art Students League of NY he formed the Chase School of Art in 1896. Comment on works: genre, Portraits