Artwork Page for Figure 54: Abaissement volontaire de la mâchoire inférieure: mouvement inexpressif

Details / Information for Figure 54: Abaissement volontaire de la mâchoire inférieure: mouvement inexpressif

Series Title: Mécanisme de la physionomie humaine

Figure 54: Abaissement volontaire de la mâchoire inférieure: mouvement inexpressif

c. 1856, printed 1862

Guillaume-Benjamin-Amand Duchenne (de Boulogne)

(French, 1806–1875)

Adrien Tournachon

(French, 1825–1903)
Culture
Medium
Albumen print from glass plate negative
Measurements
Image: 16.4 x 12.2 cm (6 7/16 x 4 13/16 in.); Paper: 22.7 x 17.3 cm (8 15/16 x 6 13/16 in.); Mounted: 41.1 x 27.4 cm (16 3/16 x 10 13/16 in.)
Credit Line
Severance and Greta Millikin Trust 2018.11
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
Print
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Did You Know?

Duchenne, a neurologist at a hospital for the poor in Paris, turned to photography to record the grammar of human expression.

Description

Duchenne described this model, a former shoemaker, as “an old, toothless man, with a thin face, whose features, without being absolutely ugly, approached ordinary triviality.” When criticized for using such an unattractive model, Duchenne held him up as proof that “every human face could become spiritually beautiful through the accurate rendering of his or her emotions.”
A vertically oriented albumen print depicts an older man with light skin tone from the shoulders up, centered within a dark oval. Looking upward with a furrowed brow, his mouth hangs wide open, baring his teeth. He wears a light-colored shirt with an open collar. Deep shadows and a grainy texture define the strained muscles in his neck and the deep facial creases against the dark background.

Figure 54: Abaissement volontaire de la mâchoire inférieure: mouvement inexpressif

c. 1856, printed 1862

Guillaume-Benjamin-Amand Duchenne (de Boulogne), Adrien Tournachon

(French, 1806–1875), (French, 1825–1903)

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