--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I always take a close look at those who…" description: "\"I always take a close look at those who lose themselves in self portraits. They are solitary souls, prone to introspection, who have really grappled wi..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5ef/young-ha-kim-30835_existence_i-always-take-a-close-look-at-those-who_933782.png" --- # I always take a close look at those who lose themselves in… ![“I always take a close look at those who lose themselves in self portraits. They are solitary souls, prone to introspection, who have really grappled with their existence.” quote by Young-Ha Kim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5ef/young-ha-kim-30835_existence_i-always-take-a-close-look-at-those-who_933782.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5ef/young-ha-kim-30835_existence_i-always-take-a-close-look-at-those-who_933782.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5ef/young-ha-kim-30835_existence_i-always-take-a-close-look-at-those-who_933782.png) > “I always take a close look at those who lose themselves in self portraits. They are solitary souls, prone to introspection, who have really grappled with their existence.” [Young-Ha Kim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/young-ha-kim/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Observing people obsessed with self‑portraits reveals a tendency toward isolation and deep self‑examination, often reflecting existential struggle. **In simple terms:** Self‑portrait lovers tend to be solitary and introspective. Key Takeaway Recognize when introspection becomes isolation. Themes introspection solitude existentialism Mood contemplative melancholic Type analytical philosophical When to use this quote - art criticism - psychology - personal growth Key Concepts self‑portraiture identity existential crisis Questions to Reflect On - How does self‑portraiture affect your sense of belonging? - What balance between introspection and engagement feels healthy? A Different Perspective Such focus may hinder social connection and practical action. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Existence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existence/) [Introspection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/introspection/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Photography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photography/) [Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self/) [Self portrait](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self-portrait/) [Self-Awareness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self-awareness-2/) [Solitary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/solitary/) [Soul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soul/) ## Related quotes > [My early self-portraits appeared effortlessly and seemed like equivalents for my deeper emotions. Many critics remarked that the images had an almost other-worldly haunting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-tenneson/my-early-self-portraits-appeared-effortlessly-and-seemed-like/) [Joyce Tenneson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-tenneson/) > [My work has been about making a record of my life that no one can revise. I photograph myself in times of trouble or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nan-goldin/my-work-has-been-about-making-a-record-of-my-life-that-no-one-can/) [Nan Goldin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nan-goldin/) > [I have always loved the amateur side of photography, automatic photographs, accidental photographs with uncentered compositions, heads cut off, whatever. I incite people to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-klein/i-have-always-loved-the-amateur-side-of-photography-automatic/) [William Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-klein/) > [Many of Bonnard's later paintings are shot through with a powerful sense of morbidity. The self-portraits he painted after catching sight of himself in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-graham-dixon/many-of-bonnard-s-later-paintings-are-shot-through-with-a-powerful/) [Andrew Graham-Dixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-graham-dixon/) > [I think self-portraits are very difficult. I’ve always seen mine as straightforward, very stripped down, hair pulled back. No shirt. Whatever light happened to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-leibovitz/i-think-self-portraits-are-very-difficult-i-ve-always-seen-mine-as/) [Annie Leibovitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-leibovitz/) > [I think that deprecation part is a very important aspect because when someone looks into themselves, if they're going to be honest, they're going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-w-k/i-think-that-deprecation-part-is-a-very-important-aspect-because-when/) [Andrew W.K](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-w-k/) > [I do not care about my own appearance, but I would hope that people could see into my soul, and that is presented better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/august-strindberg/i-do-not-care-about-my-own-appearance-but-i-would-hope-that-people/) [August Strindberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/august-strindberg/) > [I felt that the beach portraits were all self-portraits. That moment of unease, that attempt to find a pose, it was all about me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rineke-dijkstra/i-felt-that-the-beach-portraits-were-all-self-portraits-that-moment/) [Rineke Dijkstra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rineke-dijkstra/) > [There are ways of angling the camera. I don't just use a tripod. The only time I did that was in '88 when I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nan-goldin/there-are-ways-of-angling-the-camera-i-don-t-just-use-a-tripod-the/) [Nan Goldin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nan-goldin/) > [Everyone thinks these are self-portraits but they aren't meant to be. I just use myself as a model because I know I can push…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cindy-sherman/everyone-thinks-these-are-self-portraits-but-they-aren-t-meant-to-be/) [Cindy Sherman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cindy-sherman/) > [Self-portraits have been done in painting, but never in music or literature. It has no meaning, it makes no sense. And in movies I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-luc-godard/self-portraits-have-been-done-in-painting-but-never-in-music-or/) [Jean-Luc Godard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-luc-godard/) > [I paint self-portraits because I am so often alone, because I am the person I know best.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frida-kahlo/i-paint-self-portraits-because-i-am-so-often-alone-because-i-am-the/) [Frida Kahlo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frida-kahlo/) > [Painting self-portraits without clothes on has also given me some publicity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cleo-moore/painting-self-portraits-without-clothes-on-has-also-given-me-some/) [Cleo Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cleo-moore/) > [When I look in the mirror, I am slightly reminded of self-portraits by Durer and by Rembrandt, because they both show a degree of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-winston/when-i-look-in-the-mirror-i-am-slightly-reminded-of-self-portraits-by/) [Robert Winston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-winston/) > [Self-portraits are a way of revealing something about oneself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-kandel/self-portraits-are-a-way-of-revealing-something-about-oneself/) [Eric Kandel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-kandel/) ## More by Young-Ha Kim > [“An artist's passion shouldn't create passion. An artist's supreme virtue is to be detached and cold.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/young-ha-kim/an-artist-s-passion-shouldn-t-create-passion-an-artist-s-supreme/) [Young-Ha Kim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/young-ha-kim/) > [ The artistic desire reveals itself in dark form - in karaoke bars \[or\] trolling on the Internet. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/young-ha-kim/the-artistic-desire-reveals-itself-in-dark-form-in-karaoke-bars-or/) [Young-Ha Kim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/young-ha-kim/) > [Life is a continuous cycle of once-terrifying things becoming normal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/young-ha-kim/life-is-a-continuous-cycle-of-once-terrifying-things-becoming-normal/) [Young-Ha Kim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/young-ha-kim/) > [Why does nothing change, even when you set out for a faraway place?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/young-ha-kim/why-does-nothing-change-even-when-you-set-out-for-a-faraway-place/) [Young-Ha Kim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/young-ha-kim/) > [A kid who has just started to lie is taking the first step as a storyteller.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/young-ha-kim/a-kid-who-has-just-started-to-lie-is-taking-the-first-step-as-a/) [Young-Ha Kim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/young-ha-kim/) > [Sometimes fiction is more easily understood than true events. Reality is often pathetic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/young-ha-kim/sometimes-fiction-is-more-easily-understood-than-true-events-reality/) [Young-Ha Kim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/young-ha-kim/) > [ \[We often\] criticize the people on TV: 'He just can't act.' 'You call that singing?' ... We get jealous not because we're evil, but… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/young-ha-kim/we-often-criticize-the-people-on-tv-he-just-can-t-act-you-call-that/) [Young-Ha Kim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/young-ha-kim/) > [And still everything’s the same, even though I did my best to get as far away as I could.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/young-ha-kim/and-still-everything-s-the-same-even-though-i-did-my-best-to-get-as/) [Young-Ha Kim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/young-ha-kim/) > [There are only two ways to be a god: through creation or murder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/young-ha-kim/there-are-only-two-ways-to-be-a-god-through-creation-or-murder/) [Young-Ha Kim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/young-ha-kim/) > [Novels are food for the leftover hours of life, the in-between times, the moments of waiting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/young-ha-kim/novels-are-food-for-the-leftover-hours-of-life-the-in-between-times/) [Young-Ha Kim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/young-ha-kim/) > [Dont be a fish; be a frog. Swim in the water and jump when you hit ground.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/young-ha-kim/dont-be-a-fish-be-a-frog-swim-in-the-water-and-jump-when-you-hit/) [Young-Ha Kim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/young-ha-kim/) > [People who don’t know how to summarize have no dignity. Neither do people who needlessly drag on their messy lives. They who don’t know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/young-ha-kim/people-who-don-t-know-how-to-summarize-have-no-dignity-neither-do/) [Young-Ha Kim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/young-ha-kim/) > [“The present is re-created to immortalize memories. It's pathetic, but that's human tendency now.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/young-ha-kim/the-present-is-re-created-to-immortalize-memories-it-s-pathetic-but/) [Young-Ha Kim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/young-ha-kim/) > [A revolution cannot progress without the fuel of terror. With time that relationship inverts: the revolution presses forward for the sake of terror. Like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/young-ha-kim/a-revolution-cannot-progress-without-the-fuel-of-terror-with-time/) [Young-Ha Kim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/young-ha-kim/) > [People unconsciously want to reveal their inner urges.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/young-ha-kim/people-unconsciously-want-to-reveal-their-inner-urges/) [Young-Ha Kim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/young-ha-kim/) [Explore all 16 Young-Ha Kim quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/young-ha-kim/) ## More Existence quotes > [Getting on the cover of TIME guarantees the existence of opposition in the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kenneth-galbraith/getting-on-the-cover-of-time-guarantees-the-existence-of-opposition/) [John Kenneth Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kenneth-galbraith/) > [The time that one gains cannot be accumulated in a storehouse; it is contradictory to want to save up existence, which, the fact is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/the-time-that-one-gains-cannot-be-accumulated-in-a-storehouse-it-is/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [A lot of indigenous cultures are deeply involved in working with ancestor spirits, elemental spirits, and demons. Many of these cultures feel that, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-pinchbeck/a-lot-of-indigenous-cultures-are-deeply-involved-in-working-with/) [Daniel Pinchbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-pinchbeck/) > [It does not seem to me to be sufficiently recognized everywhere among the officials that the existence or non-existence of our people and Empire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-von-hindenburg/it-does-not-seem-to-me-to-be-sufficiently-recognized-everywhere-among/) [Paul von Hindenburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-von-hindenburg/) > [Quantum physics fluctuates all the time. But now the fluctuations are not just particles coming into and out of existence, which happens all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/quantum-physics-fluctuates-all-the-time-but-now-the-fluctuations-are/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [We have a fear of facing ourselves. That is the obstacle. Experiencing the innermost core of our existence is very embarrassing to a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chogyam-trungpa/we-have-a-fear-of-facing-ourselves-that-is-the-obstacle-experiencing/) [Chogyam Trungpa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chogyam-trungpa/) > [One of the things I regret about not putting in that book or I think it's there but I didn't really elaborate on it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-warner/one-of-the-things-i-regret-about-not-putting-in-that-book-or-i-think/) [Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/) > [My mind rebels at stagnation. Give me problems, give me work, give me the most abstruse cryptogram, or the most intricate analysis, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/my-mind-rebels-at-stagnation-give-me-problems-give-me-work-give-me/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [May God bless each of us in our calls to serve. May our faith strengthen as we serve in righteousness, faithfully keeping the commandments.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-tom-perry/may-god-bless-each-of-us-in-our-calls-to-serve-may-our-faith/) [L. Tom Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-tom-perry/) > [Never belong to a crowd; Never belong to a nation; Never belong to a religion; Never belong to a race. Belong to the whole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/never-belong-to-a-crowd-never-belong-to-a-nation-never-belong-to-a/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [A knowledge of the existence of something we cannot penetrate, of the manifestations of the profoundest reason and the most radiant beauty - it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/a-knowledge-of-the-existence-of-something-we-cannot-penetrate-of-the/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [Universities are the cathedrals of the modern age. 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