In art & art history, self-portrait means: A portrait that artists make of themselves, usually by looking in a mirror or at a photograph.
In Turkish: otoportre
How it is used
Rembrandt, Van Gogh and Frida Kahlo are famous for their many self-portraits. Art historians ask how artists present themselves: as a gentleman, a worker or someone suffering. The plural is self-portraits.
Example sentences
Rembrandt painted around forty self-portraits during his career.
In this self-portrait, she shows herself holding brushes and a palette.
Common collocations
paint a self-portrait
self-portrait with
early self-portrait
photographic self-portrait
Related terms
portraitA painting, drawing, photograph or sculpture of a particular person, usually showing the face and saying something about their character or status.
paintingA picture made by putting paint on a surface such as canvas, wood or a wall; also the art or activity of making such pictures.
oeuvreThe complete body of work an artist produced during their life, considered as a whole.
figurativeShowing people, animals or objects in a way you can recognise, even if they are simplified or distorted; the opposite of abstract.
