Tracing the material history of MAC USP’s Self-Portrait by Amedeo Modigliani

Abstract

This two-part article (history and analysis, followed by the interpretation of data obtained via analytical techniques) is a study of Amedeo Modigliani’s Self-Portrait (1919, oil/ canvas, 100 x 65 cm2), which belongs to the Museu de Arte Contemporânea of the Universidade de São Paulo (MAC USP). By collating documentation on the work’s provenance, critical sources regarding Modigliani’s approach to painting, and technical-scientific (physicochemical and imaging) analyses, we were able to reassess it in light of the articulation between the work’s materiality and composition. We also managed to throw new light on the work’s critical reception in the 1950s, when it arrived in Brazil and received international exposure – at that time, already part of a Brazilian collection – by means of publications and exhibitions.