DescriptionThis self-portrait, which La Farge painted in October 1859 at his family's estate in Glen Cove, Long Island, reflects his use of a photograph as a pictorial source; his appreciation of the unmodulated shapes and flattened space of Japanese prints; his reliance on broad tonal masses in the manner of his teachers, Thomas Couture and William Morris Hunt; and his experiments in plein-air landscape painting. The artist portrays himself as a landscapist ready to embark on a painting expedition.

Signatures, Inscriptions, and MarkingsInscriptions: [dated at lower right]: October.26.27 / 1859

ProvenanceThe artist, 1859–84; sale, Ortgies and Company, New York, April 17, 1884, no. 32; Albert Stickney, New York, 1884–died 1908; his wife, New York, 1908–11; sale, Anderson Art Galleries, New York, January 18, 1911, no. 76; Henry Lee Higginson, Boston, 1911–died 1919; his niece, Helene (Mrs. Johan) Durup, Hingham Center, Massachusetts, 1919–34