WHEN Russell Brand posted an unflattering photo of Katy Perry, who was then his wife, without makeup in 2010, the reaction was swift. It was deleted from Twitter the same day. “Here’s one way to annoy your wife,” The New York Post quipped.

Who knew that just a few years later, makeup-free photos would become a celebrity trend?

Female stars have been rushing to publish photos of themselves without makeup. Last week, Rihanna, known for her brightly colored hair and makeup, posted a photo of herself on Twitter looking like the girl next door, makeup free and with braided pigtails. That followed a quadriptych of photos she posted several months ago, showing her looking as if she had just rolled out of bed, albeit with flawless and radiant skin.

Also last week, Nicole Polizzi, the “Jersey Shore” star better known as Snooki, posted a photo of herself without any of the heavy bronzer, eyeliner and pink blush that she is known for. She looked like someone you could bring home to meet Mom. “My clean canvas before I get artistic,” the Twitter message read.

They were not the first: Jennifer Love Hewitt, Demi Lovato, Lady Gaga and others have all self-published photos without makeup in recent months.