As well as representing your physical attributes and a document of your age, self-portraiture can be used to announce yourself as an artist in style you are currently working in – a calling card of sorts.
One artist who saw himself as a fine self-portrait artist was Rembrandt. He did this effortlessly with nearly 100 self-portraits in his lifetime. It can be difficult to paint or draw yourself in an honest light but it can teach you to be authentic in creative work.
Portraiture is a very old art form born in ancient Egypt, where it flourished about 5,000 years ago. During that time, before the invention of photography, the only way to record the appearance of someone was through painting, sculpture or drawing.
A portrait was created to represent a person/someone, in which the face and its expression are predominant.
Selfies and painted self-portraits, on the other hand, share many similarities. Both selfies and self-portraits are forms of self-representation using different technology. While smartphones and cameras are types of technology, mirrors and painting are other types.
Nowadays, everybody takes selfies.
According to Psych Alive, expert Dr Pamela Rutledge, Director of the Media Psychology Research Centre in Boston, states:
“Selfies frequently trigger perceptions of self-indulgence or attention-seeking social dependence that raises the damned-if-you-do and damned-if-you-don’t the spectre of either narcissism or very low self-esteem.”
“This is just the start as slowly our ever-evolving world is joining hands to highlight the future of the internet and soon lifestyle,” says Chiamond.
Expect more self-portraiture and selfies soon.
SEE MORE: Kunihiko Morinaga | How Anrealage Is Creating A New Digital ‘Dimension.’