Selbstbildnis mit dem Hut in der Hand

'Selbstbildnis mit dem Hut in der Hand' (Self-Portrait with Hat in Hand), painted in 1873 on cardboard and now at the Kunsthaus Zürich, was executed during the same Italian period as several of von Marées's most important figure studies. The informal support — cardboard rather than canvas — suggests a work of personal rather than commercial intent, a quick self-examination rather than a formal presentation. 1873 was the year of his deep collaboration with Konrad Fiedler and their extended conversations about the pure formal basis of visual art, and the hat held in the hand adds a moment of casual, non-heroic self-presentation consistent with the informality of the support. The Kunsthaus Zürich holds this alongside other works from the Deutschrömer tradition, providing a Swiss counterpart to the major Munich and Berlin collections. The self-portrait offers a rare glimpse of von Marées in an unguarded, quasi-domestic mode.

The cardboard support requires a different technical approach than canvas — less flexible, more absorbent — and von Marées adapts his paint handling accordingly, working with somewhat more compact, less fluid strokes. The composition is tight and economical, placing the head and hat in close proximity with a dark background. The result is a concentrated, rapid likeness rather than a sustained formal study.