How do you think we could express identity through an image?

Artists have often explored identity by creating portraits, both of him / herself and of others. If you look at a painter such as Holbein, you will see that he has included clothing and objects in the image. This gives us a number of clues about the subject's position in society - for example whether they are wealthy or poor. It could also tell us about their tastes and what kind of job they do. If you take another artist such as Frida Kahlo, the self-portrait becomes a way for the artist to express personal experiences and how they feel as an individual. Kahlo suffered spine injuries in a traffic accident as a young woman and this affected how she was able to live the rest of her life. She also includes things that are worn on the body but this time she it is not always about personal preferences. Some of the items that Kahlo wears point to the medical treatments she had to endure. The objects that she surrounds herself with are taken from her imagination. This enables her to express something about her experiences and how it feels to live with a life-changing spine injury.