
Self-Portrait (...at the door), 1979
Bister, chalk, and watercolor on paper, 40 x 38 cm
Self-Portrait (...at the door), 1979
Ruth Baumgarte depicts herself here in a confident pose. She is 56 years old, a successful artist and the director of the Das Fenster gallery. She manages a patchwork family with five children and a large house, and travels regularly and extensively. Yet she has also lost close relatives, and her marriage with Hans Baumgarte is facing serious challenges.
The masterful drawing in bister and chalk shows a woman who has found her place in life and knows what she wants. Her left hand holds the door frame, and her right is raised as if in salutation, although we can only see the tips of her fingers. We do not know whether the gesture is in greeting or farewell, but the unclear situation is chosen deliberately: Because she is precisely located on the threshold between private space on the right and public space on the left, where modern architecture can be seen in the background.
The symbolism of the door is ambiguous: doors connect, but they can also separate; they can lead to the outside into vast empty space or open in welcome to the inside. Selbstbildnis (…an der Tür) (Self-Portrait (...at the door)) appears to offer a prophetic look into Baumgarte's own future. Her art changed in the 1980s and became more emotional. She explored controversial social issues from a perspective of personal experience and individual belief. She would also find the fulfilment of her life's work in her Africa cycle, which from 1991 on was shown at numerous international exhibitions and brought her recognition for her artistic oeuvre.