Self-portraiture

Self-portraiture, or Autoportraiture is the field of art theory and history that studies the history, means of production, circulation, reception, forms, and meanings of self-portraits.^[1][2][3] Emerging in Antiquity and becoming popular from the Renaissance as an artistic practice, as a specific field of study, self-portraiture is recent, but it has been expanding rapidly.

Ana Peraica wrote, about self-portraiture today, in view of the prolification of the production of self-portraits, particularly the so-called selfies:^[4]

Culture of the Selfie is an in-depth art-historical overview of self-portraiture, using a set of theories from visual studies, narratology, media studies, psychotherapy, and political principles.

Self-portraiture does not only encompass the visual arts. Studies emerge from various areas, such as Philosophy.^[5] Language development is dynamic and a reality. The term selfie, for example, only emerged in the 1980s. But the term, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, self-portraiture has been known since the seventeenth century.^[6] Although, when we refer to self-portraiture almost simultaneously, we are remitted to artistic production, however, if we look at the contemporary literature, we will see that the universe of academic studies, mainly, is focused on several disciplines.^[7]

It is possible that self-portraiture has accompanied the emergence of the individual's perception in modern society.^[8]

In the visual arts, it is easy to notice the growth of artists' representations as the very theme of their creations. Dürer was the first to develop a series of works.^[9] Centuries later, Rembrandt produced a great number.^[10] Rare is the artist, these days, who has not been seduced by self-representation. Self-portraiture has become very common.^[11]

The concepts of self-portraiture and self-portrait should not be confused. Categorization is the process by which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and classified, and consists of organizing the objects of a given universe into groups or categories, with a specific purpose. It is a fundamental mechanism for reason, communication, and cognition.^[12] This is, by the way, because the term "selfie" only appears in the 1980s.