At the time Wichman decided to become an artist – around 1910 – the visual arts were in a period of experimentation. Besides painting, he also started to experiment with all kinds of chemical processes. He was able to do this in the silver factory of Carel Begeer. In 1922, he found a theme that would dominate throughout the rest of his work: the mask. Wichman lived from hand to mouth. In 1925, a generous donation enabled him to paint a series of paintings. Self-portrait is part of this series. Wichman’s masks are not there to conceal, but rather to expose.
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At the time Wichman decided to become an artist – around 1910 – the visual arts were in a period of experimentation. Besides painting, he also started to experiment with all kinds of chemical processes. He was able to do this in the silver factory of Carel Begeer. In 1922, he found a theme that would dominate throughout the rest of his work: the mask. Wichman lived from hand to mouth. In 1925, a generous donation enabled him to paint a series of paintings. Self-portrait is part of this series. Wichman’s masks are not there to conceal, but rather to expose.
opschrift en datering achterzijde, op doek schuin van links boven naar rechts (met zwarte verf, onduidelijk): Amsterdam // 15 Dec '25 // EWichman (EWichmann onderstreept / 1998: niet zichtbaar vanwege achterkantbescherming)
Erich Wichman (Utrecht 1890-Amsterdam 1929) was schrijver en beeldend kunstenaar (schilderijen, plastiek, glas-in-lood) Als politiek activist ontwikkelde hij zich vanaf 1918 van anarchist tot fascist.
Documentation
"Kijk maar, er staat niet wat er staat", (Utrecht, 1976), p. 8-9, met afb.
Beeldende kunst 1850-2001, Marja Bosma, (Utrecht, 2001), pp. 470-473, met afb. in kleur; cd-rom
De Utrechtse Parade 1495-1995 : van Van Scorel tot Rietveld en Koch, red. Renger de Bruin, Jos de Meyere, Suzanne de Sitter. teksten Hanneke Adriaans, Marja Bosma, Renger de Bruin, Roman Koot, Jos de Meyere, Ida van Zijl, (Utrecht, 1994), p. 155, afb. 76
