Self-portrait with L’Humanite was written in 1923, when Dali studied at the Madrid Academy of Arts. The name refers to the French socialist magazine “L’Humanite”, to which Dali signed. Against the background to the right of Dali is seen part of the word “L’Humanitie”; Dali cut out the title from the first page and pasted it onto the picture, giving it the look of a collage to create a texture contrast.
Like many artists, Dali was the author of a large number of self-portraits that reflected his life during their writing. Here we see Dali almost devoid of individual characteristics, when compared with the realistic “self-portrait with Raphael’s neck.” Information about his human essence Dali reports through what he reads. In this picture, Dali has no mouth – this technique is typical for many of his later works and symbolizes loss of control and fear.