An unknown self-portrait of Vincent Van Gogh has been discovered by a Scottish museum. This portrait, more than a century old, was on the back of another canvas by the Dutch painter.
A rare find. In the midst of preparations for the exhibition “A taste For Impressionism”, which is due to open on July 30, the National Galleries of Scotland has discovered an unknown self-portrait of Van Gogh (1853-1890). And for good reason, this painting showing a bearded man, wearing a hat and with a cut left ear was behind another canvas called “Portrait of a peasant woman”, painted by the Dutch master in 1885.
It was thanks to an X-ray study that the museum was able to unearth this “incredible discovery”, which was on the back of the work, hidden under layers of glue and cardboard. Layers which, it seems, had been added before an exhibition at the beginning of the 20th century.
The museum, which until then held only three canvases by the painter whose ear was cut off after a violent dispute with Gauguin in 1888, was delighted with this major discovery, as its curator Lesley Stevenson explained: “When we saw the radio for the first time, of course we were super excited”, specifying that “this kind of major discovery only happens once or twice in the life of a curator”.
Van Gogh known for using the same canvas multiple times
It remains to be seen whether it will be possible to separate these two paintings without damaging the “Portrait of a Peasant Woman”. A delicate operation that experts are thinking about. In the meantime, the x-ray of this unpublished self-portrait, apparently produced after his installation in Paris and the discovery of the Impressionists, will be exhibited this summer at the museum.
If this discovery is truly incredible, the Dutch painter, who lived in France from 1886 and died there in 1890 in Auvers-sur-Oise, was nevertheless known to use the same canvas several times. A process mainly used by the artist at the beginning of his career, in order to save money.
Little recognized during his lifetime, Van Gogh left behind more than 2,000 paintings, drawings and sketches. He regularly painted self-portraits, of which 37 were known so far.