Self-Portrait (In a Yellow Blouse) is one of the programmatic self-portraits in the oeuvre of Robert Falk. In the 1920s, the artist taught at the Higher Art-Technical Studios (VKhUTEMAS) in Moscow. He headed the studio of painting, paying much attention to his mission as a teacher and the tasks of the new painting. The artist often turned to self-portraiture, which let him calmly and profoundly resolve these tasks. In this particular work, he creates a serious, concentrated and thoughtful image of a philosophical artist. The master develops his method of multi-layered painting – various coats of paint, rhythmically organised texture and expressive tones – permitting him to penetrate the essence of man’s inner world.

Falk Robert

Falk, Robert Rafailovich (1886, Moscow — 1958, Moscow)
Painter, graphic artist, theatrical designer. Studied at the Konstantin Juon and Ivan Dudin School of Drawing and Painting and Ilya Mashkov’s studio in Moscow (1903–1905) and the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture (1905–1909). Founding member of the Knave of Diamonds (1911). Member and exhibitor of the Knave of Diamonds (1910–1927), World of Art (1911–1917, 1921–1922), Association of Artists of Revolutionary Russia (1925–1928) and the Society of Moscow Artists (1925–1928). Worked at IZI Narkompros (1918–1921) and the Institute of Artistic Culture (1920). Lived and worked in Paris (1928–1937) and Moscow (1937–1958). Professor of the State Free Art Studios/VKhUTEMAS/VKhUTEIN (1918–1928) and the Moscow Institute of Applied and Decorative Art (1945–1958).