Gustave Courbet; The Desperate Man

Gustave Courbet (1819 - 1877) was a French realist painter who specialised in the art of the Impression of art. First donning the brush as a teenager Gustave moved to Paris to use the Louvre as his own person refrence guide for greatness, taking inspiration from greats such as Titian and Velazquez.

His early work mirrored that of 18th century realism, focusing on the landscape of the everyday human life. Many of Courbets works “challenged convention by rendering scenes from daily life on the large scale previously reserved for history painting and in an emphatically realistic style. Confronted with the unvarnished realism of Courbet’s imagery, critics derided the ugliness of his figures and dismissed them as ‘peasants in their Sunday best.’” (source - metmuseum.org)

The desperate man (1845) reflected that of shock and panic, flair being shown in each hair stroke, The heavy overhead lighting reflecting a mood of dramatic suspense, the blood in his cheeks displaying clarity of emotion.

I personally find this self portrait as fascinating as it convays a stark emotion not common of the romantic era of the 18th century.

Gustave uses the movement of Realism to convey the truth behind dramatic emotion by focusing on a single subject.

Courbet uses harsh lighting to create an ambiance of seriousness and drama

I personally am going to attempt to use harsher lighting in mine and create the texture Courbet creates to show a semi desperation of existential crisis.

Source-

https://artsandactivities.com/the-desperate-man-gustave-courbet/Gustave Courbet