Selfies And Self-Portraits
Selfies are a type of photograph that one takes of themselves. In modern times, selfies are taken with a smart device such as: a phone, or a webcam. Those who take selfies typically post them to a social media of some sort like: Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, Facebook and much more. However in the past, selfies were taken with camera's. They were known as self portraits.
Why have selfies become popular?
I think that the reason why selfies have become so popular is because of technology. In the past, technology hadn’t even taken of yet and it wasn’t were we are with technology right now. Also if you wanted to take a picture of yourself in the past, you would take it with a type of camera and hope that one of the pictures you had taken would come out good. Whereas now you can see how your picture looks likes without even taking the image, thanks to smart devices and mobile phones.
Another reason why I think selfies have become so popular is because we like to document our lives and share it with our family’s and even our friends.
One last reason why I think selfies have become so popular is because it is a way of expressing ourselves, expressing our creativity and originality. People take selfies to help showcase who they are and also what they’re doing at that moment.
Another reason why I think selfies have become so popular is because we like to document our lives and share it with our family’s and even our friends.
One last reason why I think selfies have become so popular is because it is a way of expressing ourselves, expressing our creativity and originality. People take selfies to help showcase who they are and also what they’re doing at that moment.
Is there a downside to the taking and sharing of selfies?
I think the main downside of sharing selfies that you have taken, is that you don’t know how the response is gonna be, whether it’s gonna positive or negative you don’t know. Also those who take selfies can sometimes become self-critical as you start to view yourself in the eyes of others.
What are the rules or conventions for taking a selfie? Where do these come from? Is it OK to break these rules?
I wouldn’t say that there are necessarily rules to taking selfies, except to use a smartphone camera or a webcam when taking a selfie. Selfies are more about how you want to conduct yourself at that moment of time, it is more about what location you want to use and whether you want your picture to be light and airy, or dull and gloomy. Selfies are more about how much creativity and originality you want to put into it, how much of your face you want to show, whether you would like the selfie to be zoomed in or out. Selfies are more about you as a person and whether you would like to step out of your comfort zone.
Why do artists make self-portraits?
Some artists make self-portraits because they can paint and create their own reality. Also nobody knows yourself better than you know you. Other artists make self portraits because what are you actually supposedly meant to capture, what is on the face, what is inside the face, or what is behind the face? The only person who can capture what’s behind the face is you, because only you know your real and true self.
What is the true definition of a selfie and a self-portrait?
The definition of a selfie is:
‘A photograph that you take of yourself, usually with a mobile phone. Selfies are often published using a form of social media.’
The definition of a self-portrait from a dictionary is:
’A portrait of oneself done by oneself’
‘A photograph that you take of yourself, usually with a mobile phone. Selfies are often published using a form of social media.’
The definition of a self-portrait from a dictionary is:
’A portrait of oneself done by oneself’
“Selfie is a slang for self-portrait.” It is an photograph taken on a mobile device and it is seen via hundreds of people through social media.
“A self-portrait is a work of art featuring the artist as a subject.”
“A self-portrait is a work of art featuring the artist as a subject.”
Vivian Maier
VIVIAN MAIER was very poor so her occupations were a nanny, caretaker and a housekeeper. She would photograph the children she would babysit, majority of the photographs being when they were outside.
VIVIAN MAIER was an American street artist. She took photographs of her everyday life, majority of her photographs consisting and involving people. VIVIAN took thousands of photos between the 50’s to the 70’s however her photographs were discovered in 2009. VIVIAN hid her photographs in a room that nobody was allowed to enter. VIVIAN kept a camera on her at all times, as she never knew what she could capture. She took photographs as a way of holding on to her memories.
I chose these 9 photographs because they have the most character and the audience seeing these images would want to know the stories behind these images. Another reason why I chose these photographs is because the people behind these images had a moment of their life photographed, which had an impact in them.
Inspired by Vivian Maier
Using VIVIAN MAIER’S work, I created photographs. These photographs were in B&W, as her photos didn’t have colour as colour films wasn’t invented during that period of time. VIVIAN’s photographs also have the subjective view at the font of photograph, so I incorporated that detail into my photograph as well.
Seeing with Vivian
I named my exhibition ‘seeing with Vivian’ as these are the sights that she captured and saw. I chose 15 photographs that had the most character or emotion in them as the audience viewing these images would feel as if they need answers to their questions about these images.
Vivian’s photos shows us that not everything is perfect and in this world there would always be people suffering and other people doing bad. These photos shows us that not everything is perfect and we chose what aspects of our life’s people want to see. These photos always show us that we should be aware of important things going on in the world and we should educate ourself and be thankful of the position that we are in as we are fortunate compared to others.
Vivian’s photos shows us that not everything is perfect and in this world there would always be people suffering and other people doing bad. These photos shows us that not everything is perfect and we chose what aspects of our life’s people want to see. These photos always show us that we should be aware of important things going on in the world and we should educate ourself and be thankful of the position that we are in as we are fortunate compared to others.
The Shadow & Reflected Selfie
I have chosen to do the shadow selfie as you can choose what objects the shadows are going to be and how you’re going to portray the object’s shadow. The shadow selfie is a photograph, which majority of the time includes the shadow of the photographer. I have also chosen to incorporate elements of the reflected selfie as they both link in a way, they both contain the photographer or an object.
These are the types of photographs I have based my work on. In these photos, the photographer is present and they use their surrounding to base the mood of the picture. An example of this is the first photograph, the surrounding of the shadow is green and yellow, this makes the audience viewing this image feel happy. This type of selfie creates a sense of mystery as we don’t know who the photographer is and we can only guess by what is given to us.
Here are a few photos that I have taken. I found this task quite difficult because I wanted each photograph to be different in a way and I also wanted for each photograph to include an element of creativity.
This is a video that talks about peoples views and perceptions on selfies and self-portraits. It also talks about ideas and how different peoples ideas differ. Majority of the people on the video describe self-portraits as a way to express yourself and there is a lot of meaning behind the surface. They also said that self-portraits makes you question and have various thoughts about it whereas selfies remind you about a certain memories/day you had in the past. They describe selfies as a way to keep memories.
This is a video that talks about the lack of representation for p.o.c in the national portrait gallery. It talks about how p.o.c should have a section dedicated to them as there isn’t a lot of representation for them. This is an important topic to talk about because p.o.c are looked as less in the artist element as they aren’t really understood. It also shows the stereotypes given to people with different ethnicities, race, religion and skin colour and how some artists incorporate that into their work such as photographs. Hermani goes into detail about an artist named Grace Lau and shows her culture, her self portraits and the stereotypes she faced.
Frederick Douglass
Frederick Douglass was an American social reformer, abolitionist, orator, writer, and statesman. He became the national leader of the abolitionist, shortly after escaping from slavery in the state of Maryland. He became the national leader in Massachusetts and New York. He was born in the year 1818 and later passed away on the 20th February 1895.
What is a Daguerreotype?
A daguerreotype is a photograph taken by an early photographic process. It employs an iodine silvered plate that is sensitised and a mercury vapour. It is a direct-positive process, which allows it to create a very detailed image on a copper plated sheet.
Why might Douglass have wanted portraits to be made of himself?
The reason I think Douglass wanted to have portraits made of himself is so that he could remember he’s accomplishments and everything that he has done that made him who he is. Another reason why I think Douglass wanted portraits of himself is so that people could take inspiration from him and make a change in the world, which they were living in.
What is interesting about the way Frederick Douglass is represented in this image?
In this image, Douglass is represented as a very serious man as well as being concerned, as he looks like he has a lot on his mind. He is dressed in presentable clothes, such as a suit, to maybe ensure that he gives a good impression and to show the career he built for himself.
Omar Victor Diop is a Senegalese self-taught photographer. He lives and works in Dakar, the capital of Senegal. He was born in the year 1980, which makes him 40 years old. His work is in demand all around the world.
What does the word 'Diaspora' mean?
Diaspora is a population of people living in a scattered area separate to the geographic locale to where their origin lies.
Why might Diop have wanted to create a self-portrait 'disguised' as Frederick Douglass?
The reason why Diop might have wanted to create a self-portrait ‘disguised’ as Frederick Douglass could be to spread information about what black Africans were going through at that moment of time. It could also have been to ensure that more people around the world were seeing that message rather than people in the U.S.
What details in this picture do you find interesting?
I found it interesting that even though he ‘disguised’ himself as Frederick Douglass he changed some aspects of the photograph. For example, Douglass’ background is plain whereas Diop’s background is the same colour as his waistcoat and bow tie. He also added in his own twist to the photograph by adding in a whistle. With majority of Diop’s photographs he adds in sport related objects, such as football boots,
Why is the picture circular?
The reason the picture could be circular is because a camera is usually round so the flashlight might come out circular, so Diop could have cropped his photograph and kept the parts that were the most important or looked better. Another reason Diop could have made the picture circular is to make it different from typical photographs we have seen that are rectangular or square and give his photograph more character.
With all these photographs, Omar Victor Diop added in an element of creativity and areas in these photographs that have his own persona. Diop added in items that referred back to football, such as: footballs, football boots, and a whistle (in Frederick Douglass’ recreation). What is interesting about the recreations of the originals in the Diaspora series is that Diop recreates the clothes and the scenery nearly to exact but adds a twist by either replacing an object with a football related item, or just adding it in.
I chose these photographs to talk about because even though one is a recreation, they are both different from each other. In José Tapiro y Baro self-portrait he used only 4 colours: cream; green; orange; and white perhaps to keep the photo simple. Omar Victor Diop used around 7. The colours that Diop used are more brighter and filled with patterns of flowers with an ongoing pop of green throughout. Diop uses the same pattern on his clothing on his background, I wonder why he did that? José used more plainer colours like the gold ridge of his frame, or the cream robe (which makes him look as if he is in power). With Diop’s recreation more elements of his body is seen than with Jose’s. Omar Victor Diop incorporated a football into his recreation, a reason why he could have done that was so he wasn't actual disguised, and, instead he added in an element that other photographs in the diaspora series so if somebody saw this they would know who made this.