For practical reasons
Sometimes there are practical reasons for an artist to use themselves as a model in their own work.
The artist himself is always available. If he or she chooses to work any time of the day or night, they
have a model—and at no cost! This allows an artist to practice their skills and is an inexpensive way to
produce works that advertise, or let others know about, their skills and abilities. Once they have
mastered the skills of an artist, they are free to explore in other ways.
As a way to explore who they are
For 600 years artists have used self‐portraits to explore the question, Who am I? Through images2 of
themselves they explore who they are‐‐their personalities and lifestyles and their development as a
person and an artist. Rembrandt’s self‐portraits over the years reflect every stage of his development
as an artist and a person. In the beginning, he used his face to practice new techniques3
as he mastered the techniques, he used the self‐portraits as an exploration of himself as a person and
toward the end of his life as a reflection of his own honest emotions and feelings. His final self‐
portraits show honesty and an open truthfulness about his age and character.