seven kinds of self portraits

Now that I have somewhat established what I want to do for this project, I have been asking myself how I want to execute it. Self portrait or another subject? Do I want to draw or paint? Acrylic, oil based, watercolor? How big should it be? Should it be on drawing paper or a canvas? What should the background be? I'm leaning toward doing a self portrait. I found an article titled "Seven Kinds of Self Portraits" by Tim McCormack, in which he explores the meaning or reasons behind this type of piece. Two specific kinds of self portraits from the article resonated with me. The first is, "The self portrait as an act of philosophical or emotional or psychological or existential investigation. The second states, "The self portrait as an expressive manifesto". I want to use this project as an opportunity to explore my inner mind and create something unique from my thoughts/feelings/etc. I began researching famous self portraits and I particularly like "The Desperate Man" by Gustave Courbet, and "Self Portrait" by Van Gogh. I am drawn to the expression of despair in Courbet's wide eyes. The combination of his hands tugging at his hair and the feeling in his glaring eyes express his emotional/psychological state. I have always been inclined to Van Gogh, mostly because of his painting technique. I like how the swirling motions and visible brush strokes add additional vibrancy and texture.