Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures

SLA 429F, Taras Shevchenko

Taras Shevchenko painted many self-portraits and also depicted himself as a figure in a number of other works. These self-portraits and self-depictions offer another view of Shevchenko's creativity, of his projected self-image, and of his personality. The images collected here were scanned from printed sources, as identified below. No claim is made for the accuracy of the color reproduction or for the completeness or even significance of this selection.

By far the best published collection of Shevchenko's artwork is in the last four volumes of the Complete Collection of Shevchenko's works in 10 volumes that appeared in 1961 - 1964. (Please note, this edition is not the best source for his poetry and written works but, for want of a better edition, it is the best collection of his artwork.) The four volumes have been reproduced on-line in their entirety at the Izbornik web archive: http://litopys.org.ua/shevchenko/shevh.htm.

Another collection of Shevchenko's artwork is at the Taras Shevchenko State Museum, particularly its page of Shevchenko's Art.

Also of great interest are the photographs of Taras Shevchenko, which were, of course, only in the last four years of his life, since photography was not available in earlier years. This Wikipedia entry catalogs the existing and lost photographs. This page also has valuable reproductions.

1		Shevchenko's earliest self-portrait. A student of the Academy of Art in St. Petersburg.
		winter 1840 - 1841	Oil. Canvas.
2		Shevchenko in Iahotyn. This drawing was a gift to Varvara Repnina.
		23-26 November 1843	Pen & ink, paper.
3		An unusually energetic and dignified Shevchenko. Potoky village, near Kyiv.
		28 August 1845	Pencil, paper.
4		Shevchenko in the Uniform of the 3rd Company (3 P on the cap) of the Fifth Batalion. Ors'k Fortress.
		23 June - December, 1847	Pencil, paper.
5		Shevchenko painting a friend. Raim.
		19 June - 25 August 1848	Sepia, paper.
6		Shevchenko in Orenburg.
		29 November 1849	Sepia, paper.
7		This self portrait was given to Shevchenko's Polish friend in Orenburg, Arkadiusz Wegrzynowski.
		November 1849 - April 1850	Sepia, paper.
7a		Dubious attribution to Shevchenko. In a White Cap. Note that this is an oil copy of the sepia image above.
		November 1849 - April 1850	Oil, paper.
7b		Dubious attribution to Shevchenko. In a White Cap. Another copy.
		November 1849 - April 1850	Oil, canvas.
7c		Dubious attribution to Shevchenko. In a Black Cap.
		November 1849 - April 1850	Oil, canvas.
8		Orenburg. Mailed to Andrii Lyzohub.
		29 November 1849	Sepia, paper.
9		Kara-Tau (Mangishlak peninsula) expedition. Inside a Kazakh kybytka. The two others are presumably Bronislaw Zalesky and Liudvik Turno.
		July - August 1851	Sepia, paper.
10		During the Kara-Tau expedition.
		July - August 1851	Pencil, paper.
11		Kazakh Beggar Children (Baihushi)
		autumn 1853	Sepia, paper.
12		A gift to Iakiv Kukkharenko.
		1851 - 1853	Sepia, paper.
13		Shevchenko and a Kazakh boy playing with a cat.
		summer 1856 - April 1857	Sepia, paper.
14		In the Stocks. From the "Prodigal son" series. The seated figure holding a book in the shadows against the right wall is a self portrait of Shevchenko.
		November 1856 - 10 May 1857	Ink, paper.
15		In the Barracks. The seated figure holding a book in the shadows against the right wall is a self portrait of Shevchenko, precisely as in the previous item, "In the Stocks."
		November 1856 - 10 May 1857	Ink, paper.
16		This was a gift to Mykhailo Shchepkin, the actor, who visited Shevchenko in Nyzhnii Novgorod (Gorky) while Shevchenko was returning from exile.
		28 November 1857	Pencil, paper.
17		Also in Nyzhnii Novgorod. A gift to Mykhailo Lazarevs'kyi.
		4 January 1858	Pencil, paper.
18		In St. Petersburg.
		1859	Pencil, paper.
19		Self portrait in a dark suit. St. Petersburg.
		14 March 1860	Etching, paper.
20		Self portrait in a dark suit. St. Petersburg. Aquatint of the previous item.
		14 March 1860	Etching, aquatint, paper.
21		Self portrait with a beard. St. Petersburg..
		4 April 1860	Etching, paper.
22		Shevchenko by candlelight.
		June 1860	Aquatint etching, paper.
23		Self portrait in a light suit. St. Petersburg..
		1860	Etching, paper.
24		With Fur Hat and Sheepskin Coat.
		4 December 1860	Etching, paper.
25		The last self-portrait.
		January-February 1860	Oil, canvas.
26		A nude self-portrait.
		1848	Pencil