COURBET, Gustave
(b. 1819, Ornans, d. 1877, La Tour-de-Peilz)

Self-Portrait (The Cellist)

1847
Oil on canvas, 117 x 90 cm
Nationalmuseum, Stockholm

Courbet's contribution to the Salon of 1848, which was held in the Louvre, consisted of seven paintings and three drawings. Among them was the self-portrait called The Cellist which illustrated his passionate interest in music. Both at Ornans, where members of the family and his friend Promayet played various instruments, and in Paris Courbet lived in a milieu which encouraged his inclination toward music. He could turn his hand to the violin, composed songs and took an interest in the research into folksong.