Die grüne Malerin (The Green Paintress), 2000

Oil on canvas
© Maria Lassnig Foundation

Around 1947 Maria Lassnig embarked on a program of self-study that would define much of her later work, beginning with a series of drawings she called introspektiv Erlebnisse (“introspective experiences”). Next came the sustained production of Körpergefühlsmalerei (literally, “body awareness paintings”), depictions of the parts of her anatomy that she felt as she painted. The canvases contrasted fruity hues such as bright green, pink, and blue with biomorphic shapes and lines based on her most important subject: herself. This tendency to turn inward to propel outward became something of a signature, although her bold and profoundly psychological approach to postmodern figuration could never be so neatly pinned down. Die grüne Malerin (The Green Paintress), an occupational self-portrait, sings with expressive strokes that speak to the artist’s unique system of assigning meaning to color, further enhancing the vibrancy of her canvases.