Art History: Self-Portraits Evolved Into Selfie

Every day, myriads of selfies are taken and shared on different platforms. It looks like a selfie has become a new way of self-expression, a new way to show how you look, what you are doing, and where you are.

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However, when you have a look at art history, you will see that this trend is not new at all. People wanted to show themselves to the world at all times, just the ways to do so were different.

First, ancient people were carving their actions on stones and wood. Further, portraits came to replace the carving. But it was when the Renaissance epoche started when the art of self-portraiture started flourishing. When we see the portraits created at that time, we start believing in a photo into a painting transformation, so realistic they are.

Since then, the art of a self-portrait has passed through many transformations. Now, while we still are adepts of a photo into painting principle, a selfie that shows us in the most realistic way, there is highly valued oil on canvas in different styles that are considered artistic masterpieces. About some of them, we will talk further.

Rembrandt, a Great Self-Portraitist

One of the most innovative artists of all time, Rembrandt, was also one of the most talented self-portraitists. He left more than 100 of his self-portraits, and those are only the custom portraits that we know about. Nobody knows whether all of them were preserved or some were lost forever.

In his self-portraits, we see the painter as a self-confident curious person. He is constantly wearing his distinguishing attribute – a soft velvet beret.

The artist painted his custom portraits by watching in the mirror. Maybe that’s why in all his creations, his hands are omitted. We can see just his curious face as if he was rediscovering himself.

Frida Kahlo, a Novator in Art

Frida Kahlo, a famous Mexican artist, is famous for her extremely detailed self-portraits. In her paintings, she has managed to show all her life, her suffering, her attitudes to politics and social issues.

She started to paint after an accident that has changed her life. She stayed bedridden for a long time. Constant pain, emotional suffering turned her into a great and distinctive painter, actually. She used to paint her distinctive portraits because, as she told, she was “so often alone”.

Don’t limit yourself with a quick look at her self-portraits, zoom them in, have a deeper look, and you will discover a lot of hidden details that have the deepest sense.

Amrita Sher-Gil, a Pioneering Painter with Indian Origin

Amrita Sher-Gil was acknowledged as one of the first prominent artists with Indian origin.

In her paintings, one can easily reveal her Indian background mixed with European culture. Her aim was to explore the painting process of a non-European body. She was impressed by a series of pictures by Paul Gaugin, in particular, his paintings depicting Tahitian nudes. She was amazed by the simplicity of painting and the special style that the famous painter had used. Thus, she has created a lot of self-portraits. She has moved far beyond the picture into painting principle and created self-portraits full of character and individual style.

Vincent Van Gogh, a Poor Painter Who Painted Himself

For Vincent Van Gogh, his distinctive self-portraits were not just a mere form of art but a way to paint. The painter didn’t have money to pay the models, thus, he started painting himself. Now, we have around 30 self-portraits of a great post-impressionist. Every oil painting of this distinguishing painter reveals his multifaceted talent

Van Gogh believed to brush up his skills by painting self-portraits. But the reality is that in his oil on canvas, he created unique pieces full of individual strokes so typical to this artist. His famous art pieces now are kept in the world-famous galleries and private collections. While for many artists, a photo-like portrait is a symbol of quality, this is definitely not the case of Van Gogh.

Cindy Sherman, a Self-Portrait as an Art to Show What You Want People to See

One of the most distinctive modern artists and photographers is Cindy Sherman. She believes that any art, photography, in particular, can be used to manipulate the spectator. Any photos can show the viewer what he/she wants to see.

She combines reality, parody, sarcasm, and makes the viewer unwillingly question everything he/she sees in her photos. She uses art history, TV series, movies to get new ideas and inspiration.

Sarah Lucas, a Portrait as Self-Irony

Sarah Lucas is one of the younger artists that have already left a footprint in the art of photography. In her self-portraits (there are 12 of them) she is trying to question her identity and challenge the stereotypes in the photography art. She is trying to defeat the misogyny of everyday life and does it in a very special way. To do so, she uses sometimes bawdy humor, visual puns, and other ways to challenge the viewer.

Final Thoughts

A self-portrait has always been a way of self-expression, of challenging life, social conditions, and similar. With time, the art of self-portrait has changed and took different forms. But in any case, it is a way for an artist to tell something to the world. And for sure, this art type deserves our attention and admiration.