If you’re looking for self portrait inspiration, you’ve come to the right place. Using yourself as a muse is a great way to get familiar with portraiture. Whether you’ve done a self portrait for a school project or just because, there are loads of different styles and techniques you can try. Find one that sparks your interest below!

Character portrait

Image: @merthes_mess

Grab some Watercolours or Gouache and paint yourself a stylised self portrait. By making yourself into a character, you can emphasise the features that make you, YOU! Using mediums that dry flat and matte emphasise the cartoon style.

Ballpoint pen portrait drawing

Image: @mandi_antonucci

You can use the humble ballpoint pen to DIY a self portrait. Create textured shading with fine strokes and overlay bold designs like the talented artist above! Try playing with monochromatic colour palettes to get familiar with drawing portrait shadows and highlights.

Tiny art paintings

Image: @ghutterghoul

Once you feel confident with painting your own portrait, why not recreate it on a smaller scale? You could grab a Mini Canvas or cut up some art paper as your portrait base. Experiment with stylised painting to avoid squishing too many fine details onto your teeny tiny canvas.

Cubism self portrait

Take a leaf out of Picasso’s book and capture your image in Cubism style. We’ve got a lesson you can follow to make this Picasso-inspired self portrait collage with Coloured Paper. Watch the video to learn more!

Funny face painting

Image: @millie.brandrett.brown

Strike a pose, stick out your tongue, or pull a unique expression for a fun self portrait idea. Painting your face in different poses is a great way to get familiar with your own anatomy and play with perspectives. Oil Paints help when getting used to a complex ideas, as they stay wet for longer so you can rework your design.

Mother and daughter portrait painting

Image: @tylerdarling

Capture a moment in time you want to remember, like becoming a parent. A seemingly normal or everyday picture can become a powerful painting that you treasure down the track. Scroll through your camera roll and pick out a painting reference that might seem like a typical day-in-the-life to immortalize a moment in your history!

Abstract self portrait drawing

Image: @alamaunus

Take an abstract approach to your self portrait by focusing on the overall shape, rather than the details. This artist has used a fluid medium like Watercolour or Ink to let the facial colours bleed together for a striking effect. The painting captures an essence rather than a likeness, moving the viewer to make their own interpretation of the subject.

Portrait shadows

Image: @philip_harris_art

Set yourself a challenge and take your reference photo in unusual lighting. This portrait has intriguing shadows and highlights, drawing the focus to different areas of the subject. You can experiment with alternative coloured lighting and times of day to increase the challenge!

If you’ve found a new idea to try at home, #montmarteart or tag us @montmarteart on Instagram or Facebook. We’d love to see what you come up with! Pick up some Oil Paints, Mini Canvases, or Watercolours to kick off the project.

If you want to see more art, check out our Inspo collection. Sign-up to Creative Connection by popping in your email down below to get stacks of free art projects sent straight to you. We’re here to keep you inspired!