A self-portrait is a representation of an artist, drawn, painted, photographed, or sculpted by the artist. It has become one of the most difficult yet fascinating motifs in art history. Be it an oil painting or digital photography, a self-portrait makes us ponder about the personalities who took it: who they are, what kind of photography they like, if they have a sense of humor. It might be a straight forward mirror reflection, a hidden shadow play or even a "stretched arm shot". The beauty and challenge of a self portrait is the play with nothing less than your ego. Take a look at for instance the iconic self portraits of Mr. Lee Friedlander, one of the masters of shadow reflections. Or at one of the greatest Spanish paintings of all time, Velasquez’ “Las Meninas”. It’s a portrait of the Spanish royal family, focusing on the young princess and her courtiers, relegating the king and queen to the background, and featuring Velasquez himself at the side, painting the scene. This is EYE'EM presenting some impressive examples of self portraits taking with just a cameraphone! Enjoy!
