Yale Center for British Art, Friends of British Art Fund, and Paul Mellon Fund
Copyright Status:
Public Domain
Accession Number:
B2004.2
Gallery Label:
Etty painted this self-portrait during his first visit to Venice in 1823, where he made thirty or forty copies after Old Master paintings, and was known as "Canal-Etty." During his Venetian sojourn, the artist corresponded regularly with his much older brother Walter (1774-1850), who supported him financially. Somewhat enigmatically, Etty shows himself reading an opened letter that is addressed to Walter-Monsieur Etty-at 31 Lombard Street, London. An inscription on the back, however, clearly places the artist, who signs himself in red and in Italian as "Guglielmo" (William) at "VENEZIA" (Venice). The fact that it is painted on paper (laid on a small panel) was probably due to the fact that Etty was running short of artist's materials. It may also have been painted this way so that Etty could post it home cheaply as a present for Walter. Gallery label for installation of YCBA collection, 2005