David Bomberg ('Self-Portrait with Pipe')
- Artist: David Garshen Bomberg
- Date: circa 1932
- Medium: oil on board
- Dimensions: 24 in. x 19 7/8 in. (608 mm x 505 mm) uneven
- Portrays: David Garshen Bomberg
- Museum: The National Portrait Gallery
- Collection record: The National Portrait Gallery website
Listen to the free audio guide
About this artwork
This is a self‑portrait by David Bomberg, painted in oil on board around 1932. You can see the artist’s face rendered with bold strokes and thick paint; his brushwork gives the skin a textured, almost sculptural quality. He holds a pipe in one hand, its detail highlighted against a darker background that lets the figure stand out.
Bomberg was born to Polish‑Jewish immigrants in Birmingham and studied at the Slade School of Fine Art from 1911. Early on he liked sharp, machine‑like lines, but after serving in the First World War his style became more expressive. This relaxed approach would later influence pupils such as Frank Auerbach and Leon Kossoff.
See it in person
David Bomberg ('Self-Portrait with Pipe') is in the collection of The National Portrait Gallery at St Martin's Place, London — free to enter. Point your phone at any artwork there and audioguide.london plays a free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
