The appeal to the image of Van Gogh's quite normal for A.Semushin, because the great Dutchman as well as Dali influenced the most to his creation. The genre of work is chosen not by chance too – no one of the great artists, except perhaps Rembrandt, was as keen on self portraits as Van Gogh did. However, the knife in the character’s hands takes that work outside the portrait genre specificity indicating a certain event. The painting is interesting because at very large convention it is notable for the acute psychological truthfulness. The expressive trans-surrealism of A.Semushin conveys the character’s emotions very convincing when he decided to injure himself in a state of insanity. The mood of the work supported by congealed mimic of the character and by the gray-blue range of canvas. As a result the obvious pragmatic of the picture - to provoke the viewer not only for the sympathy to the character, but also a deeper interest in his personality and his "history" - is achieved in full.
e-mail to the artist