This groundbreaking publication announces the death of the conventional portrait. In an age when we are bombarded with flawless images of youthful beauty, when rejuvenation is available through a jar of cream or a scalpel, artists and photographers seek to portray the face in new ways.
Through a variety of techniques, including computer manipulation, photomontage, and retouching, the artists present their new portraits. They replace clarity with blur, the split-second with the elastic moment, questioning the notion of a fixed identity, of universality of expression, of what constitutes beauty.
Whether Cindy Sherman's disquieting disguises, Gillian Wearing's masked self-portrait, LawickMüller's composite portraits of couples, or Orlan's disturbing experiments with cosmetic surgery, these faces demand attention. 260 illustrations, 165 in color.
