Photography

Since photography became available to artists in the early 19th century it has played a large part in informing the development of work done in other media as well as being an art form in its own right. Painters and sculptors can work from photographs instead of from life. Photographs can be copied, or projected onto a surface and traced.

The evolution of the photographic portrait also meant that a painted or sculpted portrait no longer needed to be the definitive likeness and as a result artists were more able to use these mediums to explore issues of personality and style.

Self-portraits can be made with a camera using a shutter release on a cable, allowing the artist to set up the camera, pose and take the photograph from some distance away. Some artists like to disguise the shutter release button by concealing it behind folded arms or behind their back to confuse the viewer into wondering how they managed to take it. Others have it blatantly in full view leaving no doubt that they are the creator of the work.

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