Why did portraiture become a favorite genre for Renaissance artists?

Renaissance artists began to paint portraits. This genre became their favorite, because through the portrait it was possible to convey all the features and dignity of a person. Painters paid great attention to details and individual traits of a person. They highlighted the ideal human traits in all the variety of colors and techniques. Realism became the main trend at this time. Artists abandoned religious dogmas and stopped painting only symmetrical icons for churches. In the paintings of the Renaissance, they depicted a unity with ancient traditions.