In the 1940s Barnet found creative inspiration in objects from Indigenous material cultures, which he studied during regular visits to museums, including the American Museum of Natural History in New York City, and while perusing the Smithsonian Institution’s Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology publication. Barnet valued Indigenous motifs as an essential resource for creating what he called “a real, a true American painting” distinct from European forms of abstraction.

Self-Portrait reworks motifs and patterns from Hopi pottery and Northwest Coast art, combining them into a flattened, semi-abstract rendition of Barnet’s head and upper body. In the center-left of the composition, a pipe extends from the artist’s mouth and nose, which are represented by an upside-down question mark. Paired with the red and tan square in the upper right—his hand scratching his forehead—the question mark suggests a process of creative inquiry and self-searching.

—Text taken from the Carter Handbook (2023)