Self-Portrait with a Straw Hat

A straw hat frames Van Gogh’s face with a bright band of yellow. Short strokes in the face, coat and background point in different directions, making a still pose feel active. Look at how the cool background sets off the warm beard without a sharp outline around every feature.

The work in context

This 1887 self-portrait is in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The museum’s full title also identifies another painting, The Potato Peeler, on the reverse. That physical fact is a reminder that the image we see on a screen is one face of a material object, with its own history and layers.

What to look for

The hat is a bright frame inside the outer frame. Below it, small strokes of orange, blue and green build the face without blending into a perfectly smooth surface. Look at the background beside the head and then at the coat: the direction of the marks changes your sense of each material. The direct gaze provides a still point within all that activity.

Discover it in your focus time

This work is part of the Van Gogh collection in Tempo Canvas for iPhone. As you finish focus sessions, artworks become part of your personal gallery. Use your break to revisit a detail, then put your phone aside for the next task.

New to this kind of break? Try our guide to slow looking or set up your first Pomodoro session on iPhone.