Self Portrait As A Soldier

Self Portrait As A Soldier
painting of me enjoying a self portrait by Ernst Ludwig Kirchner

Gerard Boersma
acrylic on panel
±24" x 12" or 60 x 30 cm
2025

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A compelling, highly personal installment of my "art within art" series, Self Portrait As A Soldier captures me standing in quiet contemplation before a masterpiece of early 20th-century German Expressionism. The painting within the painting is Ernst Ludwig Kirchner’s renowned 1915 canvas, Self-Portrait as a Soldier.

I think the composition creates an extraordinary stylistic tension. The crisp, photographic fidelity, clean lines, and controlled light of my contemporary perspective stand in stark, jarring contrast to the raw, jagged lines and aggressive, emotionally fraught color palette of Kirchner's underlying anti-war piece.

By inserting my own likeness next to Kirchner’s traumatized, uniform-clad figure—complete with its symbolic severed hand stump—I create a deep, multi-generational dialogue regarding human vulnerability, the psychological weight of historical trauma, and the protective, therapeutic sanctuary of the modern museum space.

Self Portrait As A Soldier is an original, 100% handmade painting and comes with a hand signed Certificate of Authenticity. The painting is signed on the front and back. As of now the painting is still unframed, but I'd be happy to frame it for you at no additional costs.

Shipping takes about two weeks no matter where you live in the world. You'll receive your painting safely packaged and ready to install immediately.

Please feel free to contact me anytime if you have any questions. I would be happy to answer all of your inquiries personally.

kind regards, Gerard Boersma

[email protected]

www.gerardboersma.nl
www.gerardboersma.blogspot.com