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Self-Portrait

Shavuot (Pentecost) (Das Wochen- oder Pfingst-Fest)
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Self-Portrait

Moritz Daniel Oppenheim (German, 1800-1882)

Self-Portrait, 1814-16

  • Oil on canvas
  • 38 11/16 x 32 7/8 in. (98.3 x 83.5 cm)
  • The Jewish Museum, New York
  • Purchase: Anonymous gift in memory of Curtis Hereld; Esther Leah Ritz Bequest; Fine Arts Acquisitions Committee Fund; Gift of Mr. and Mrs. George Jaffin, by exchange; and Abraham Aaroni and Ruth Taub Bequests, 2008-137

On view

Keywords: figurative , Neo-Classicism , self-portrait

Collection Area: Paintings

More information

Moritz Oppenheim’s life and work epitomize German Jewry’s journey from traditional life to modernity. Born in the ghetto of Hanau, he studied academic painting, an opportunity previously unavailable to Jews. As a portrait painter in Frankfurt, he received commissions from both Jews and non-Jews and enjoyed the patronage of the Rothschilds. In this work, one of the earliest self-portraits by a Jewish artist, a young Oppenheim depicts himself proudly holding his palette, a vivid testimony to the emergence of Jewish artists during the 19th century.

Source: The Jewish Museum, New York, CULTURE AND CONTINUITY: THE JEWISH JOURNEY, January 2, 2009-present.

Provenance: the artist. Henry Oppenheim (artist's nephew), Germany, by 1870; Henny Bachman (Henry's daughter), by 1940s; Kate and Max Stern, New York (Henny's daughter and son-in-law), before 1953; sold by Max to Fred Levy (Kate Stern's cousin), late 1960s, after her death; Stuart Levy (Fred's son); sold to TJM, 2008

How to interpret provenance information

Published References: Heuberger, Georg and Anton Merk, eds. MORITZ DANIEL OPPENHEIM: DIE ENTDECKUNG DES JÜDISCHEN SELBSTBEWUSSTSEINS IN DER KUNST. JEWISH IDENTITY IN 19TH CENTURY ART. Köln: Wienand, 1999, no. II.1, pp. 65, 352.

This information may change as the result of ongoing research