Identification

• A portrait is most commonly a painting, a sculpture or a photograph, but it can be any artistic visual representation that captures the likeness of an individual, including those created using mixed media and found objects. In the most traditional sense of the word, a portrait clearly shows the sitter's face and expression. In contemporary times, however, it is not necessary for a portrait to exactly resemble who is being portrayed; distortion and abstraction have become common in portraiture as artists continue to develop new styles and ways of expressing themselves. The portraits produced by such artists as Pablo Picasso and Andy Warhol are examples of this.
  
  

Significance

• In olden times, before cameras existed, painted and sculpted portraits were necessary in order for there to be visual records of what individuals looked like. The subjects in portraits were not always accurately represented--as the artist may have intended, or may have been commissioned, to flatter the sitter--but portraits always contain characteristics that make the subject easily identifiable. The rich and prominent in particular had portraits of themselves painted by the leading artists of the day, and these served as status symbols.
  
  

Considerations

• If you are an aspiring portrait artist, there are several mediums that you can choose from to specialize in. Materials such as charcoal, pastel crayons, oils and watercolors have all been used to sketch and paint portraits over time. To stretch your artistic boundaries, you may also want to pick up a camera and experiment with portrait photography. To hone your skills before advertising your services, you could even begin with a self-portrait, which is the result when an artist paints or sculpts her own image. Some of the most famous artists who have at least one self-portrait are Vincent Van Gogh, Rembrandt, Leonardo da Vinci, Frida Kahlo and Titian.
  
  

Misconceptions

• The subject of a portrait is not always a person; pet portraits have become increasingly popular and those who can afford to do so have been known to pay professional artists to paint their pets instead of simply taking pictures of them. Portraits are not created solely for the living either, as funeral masks crafted from the faces of prominent individuals who have just passed away are also a kind of portrait, and painted or sculpted posthumous portraits are common throughout history as tributes to loved ones or dead leaders.
  Another false impression is that portraits are limited to visual art. In literature, a detailed dissection, analysis or investigation of a person or thing is similarly considered a portrait.
  
  

Benefits

• Whoever commissions an artistically rendered portrait has room to be creative. In a family portrait for instance, even if a member of the family is deceased or even if the individuals that make up the family have never posed for a photograph together, a painted portrait can commemorate the family's existence. The same is true for an individual--despite not having journeyed to a favorite location or not having been born during a particular era, anyone can have these elements present in a portrait. Vintage-style photography, for example, allows those who wish it to dress in clothing from a different time period and provides the appropriate background setting to give portraits taken in this manner a seemingly authentic vibe.