Death masks / Napoleon I's mask

Death masks are molded maks on recently dead people, which let the body intact while keeping a 3D portrait of the deceased person. It's the most "true" portrait ever : indeed, what's more alive than a death mask ? It's proportional representation which make the departing look real.

The Napoleon Bonaparte's death mask (or Antommarchi mask), has been the subject of a controversy as to its authenticity. Indeed, after the death of the french Emperor in 1821, the print of his face had been molding in plaster. But several masks had been presented as authentic, those taken by the doctors of the Saint Helene's Island (island where the Emperor died) : Archibald Arnott, Francis Burton et François Antommarchi.

It all begins after the death of Napoleon. The countess Bertrand had asked for a print of the Emperor's face but because of the state of decomposition of the body, the mold of Burton didn't really matched with Napoleon's face. Antommarchi, who had announced at the countess that the print couldn't be returned went jealous of his colleague's success, so, with the help of the countess, robbed the masterpiece. The "mask of Burton" became the "mask Antommarchi".

In 1833, the "mask Arnott" appeared for the first time in public. It brought surprise and jealousy. The brother of Napoleon, Jérôme, was the owner. But it had been stolen, and in 1850, Napoleon III, the Emperor's nephew, bought it and kept it in the Tuileries, contrarely of the Antommarchi mask.

In 1855, a Napoleon's statue had been built, but his face didn't matched at all with the official mask.

In 1869, the Antommarchi's progeny suggested an older copy of the mask at the french Emperor, but he refused.

Later, the prince Victor, adjusted his own copy of the mask, which gave an other face to Napoleon...

So, if you don't know what to think about the text you just read, that's normal. Just memorize that you'll never know what Napoleon looked like because even in death he'll never be himself because of the people that kept touched up his "face". He'll always be as people saw him and not as he was ! Por Napoleon...

Now you probably wonder why I'm talking about death masks. Well, simply because the one on the picture above is in our exhibition. Why ? Because there's no better way to represent ourselves than death masks ! It's the exact copy of our physical appearence, which transcribed all our feelings, our injuries, our life... So what's more alive than a death mask ?

Booklet (EN)

Watch My Mind!

First Name: Lisa
Family Name: Desjobert
Age: 16
Date of Birth: 28/03/1994
Home: Aurillac
School: Lycée Saint-Eugène
Likes:
Dislikes:
Photomontage, using a computer programme to rework a picture of my skull on which I "stuck" a picture of a Rubik's Cube.

The aim of my work is to make the public want to look into in my head, and to feel what I feel when I think too much! But it's also to make people think about what's happening in their own minds... Are you as complicated as I am?!

So, my work, which is supposed to be funny-bizarre, is about how we perceive our inner selves, and about the way we question how others see themselves.

The title of my work, "Watch My Mind!" is a pun on “watch” which means both “see, observe” and “watch out, be careful!” Look inside my head, but be careful what you might find...

The artist Invader inspired me, particularly his exhibitions “Low Fidelity” in London, “Rubicubism” in Los Angeles, and “Rubik Space” in Paris. In these exhibitions, the artist makes obsessive use of Rubik’s Cube patterns.

Invader says in an interview that his art gave sense to his life and I think that all these cubes represent a part of his personality, the things that he has done or could have done. All those little pixels in his art represent, in fact, his mind. So, in my work I decided to use a sponge-like Rubiks’ Cube to show you how I think my own mind works.

What is this mind I talk about? It’s not something you can see, and I do not think it actually is a multicoloured sponge. It is emotion, thought, reason, perception, memory, the “stream of consciousness”, etc. In fact, it is everything that makes up a person. Philosophers, scientists, writers, artists have all explored the mind. Talking about one’s mind is a way of talking about who one is, a self-portrait that goes beyond showing one’s physical appearance; surely one is more than one’s face or body?

Invader's video : http://friendswelove.com/video/off-the-wall-invader/
Exhibition at the Lazarides Gallery : http://www.space-invaders.com/lowfi0.html
Others exhibitions : http://www.space-invaders.com/exhibitions.html

Masque mortuaire / Masque de Napoléon I

Les masques mortuaires sont des masques moulés sur le visage d'une personne morte récemment, ce qui laisse le cadavre intact tout en concervant un portrait en 3D du défunt. C'est ce qu'on peut faire de plus véridique dans la réalisation d'un portrait : en effet, quoi de plus "vivant" que le masque d'un mort ? C'est une représentation proportionellement juste qui ne fait rendre que plus réel l'être disparu.

Le masque mortuaire de Napoléon Bonaparte (ou masque Antommarchi), a fait le sujet d'une controverse quant à son authenticité. En effet, après la mort de l'Empereur français en 1821, l'empreinte de son visage fut coulée dans le plâtre. Mais il existe plusieurs masques étant présentés comme authentiques, ceux pris par les médecins de l'île de Sainte Hélène (île où l'Empereur mourrut) : Archibald Arnott, Francis Burton et François Antommarchi.
Tout commence après la mort de Napoléon. La comtesse Bertrand avait demandé à ce qu'une empreinte du visage de l'Empereur lui soit remise mais du fait de l'état de décomposition du corps, le moule de Burton, ne correspondait pas vraiment au visage de Napoléon. Antommarchi, qui avait annoncé à la comtesse que l'empreinte ne pourrait être faite devint jaloux de la réussite de son confrère, et c'est donc avec l'aide de Mme Bertrand qu'il s'empara de l'oeuvre. Le "masque Burton" devint donc le "masque Antommarchi".
En 1833, le masque Arnott apparut pour la première fois en public. Il causa surprise et jalousie. C'etait le frère de Napoléon I, Jérôme, qui en était le propriétaire. Mais il se le fit voler et c'est en 1850 que Napoléon III, neveu de l'Empereur, le racheta et le conserva aux Tuileries, contrairement au masque Antommarchi.
En 1855, une statue de Napoléon fut érigé mais son visage ne ressemblait en aucun point avec le masque officiel.
En 1869, les descendants d'Antommarchi proposèrent à l'empereur de France un exemplaire du masque des plus anciens, mais il refusa.
Plus tard, le prince Victor, fit retoucher son exemplaire du masque, ce qui donna un autre visage à Napoléon I...
Bref, si vous ne savez pas que penser du texte que vous venez de lire, c'est normal. Retenez juste que vous ne saurez jamais à quoi ressemble Napoléon !

Vous devez maintenant vous demandez pourquoi est-ce que je parle de masques mortuaires ? Et bien tout simplement parce que celui qui est sur la photo au-dessus est présent dans notre exposition. Pourquoi ? Parce que il n'y a pas de meilleur moyen de se représenter qu'un masque, même mortuaire ! C'est la copie exact de notre apparence physique, laquelle transcrit toutes nos émotions, si nous lui permettons, toutes nos blessures, toute notre vie... Alors quoi de plus vivant qu'un masque mortuaire ?

Booklet (VF)

WATCH MY MIND !


Prénom : Lisa
Nom de Famille : Desjobert
Age : 16
Date de naissance : 28/03/1994
Vie à : Aurillac
Ecole : Lycée Saint-Eugène
Aime : le cinéma, la musique, l’anglais, voyager.
N’aime pas : les insectes, l’intolérance, les maths.

Photomontage, en utilisant un programme pour retravailler l’image de mon crâne sur laquelle j’ai « collé » l’image d‘un Rubik’s Cube.

Le but de mon travail est de faire en sorte que les gens aient envie de regarder dans ma tête, et de ressentir ce que je ressens quand je pense trop ! Mais c’est aussi pour faire réfléchir les gens sur ce qui se passe dans leurs propres têtes… Etes-vous aussi compliqués que moi ?!

Donc, mon travail, qui sensé être amusant-bizarre, est sur comment nous nous percevons, et sur la façon dont nous nous demandons comment les autres nous voient.

Le titre de mon travail, « Watch My Mind ! » est un jeu de mots avec le mot anglais « watch » qui veut dire à la fois « regarder, observer » et « fait attention ! ». Regarde dans ma tête mais fait attention à ce que tu pourrais y trouver…

L’artiste Invader m’a inspiré, en particulier ses expositions « Low Fidelity » à Londres, « Rubicubism » à Los Angeles, et « Rubik Space » à Paris. Dans ces expositions, l’artiste fait un usage obsessif du Rubik’s Cube.

Invader dit dans une interview que son art a donné un sens à sa vie et je pense que tous ces cubes représentent une partie de sa personnalité, des choses qu’il a pu, ou aurait pu, faire. Tout ces petits pixels dans son travail représentent, en fait, son esprit. Donc, dans mon travail j’ai décidé d’utiliser un Rubik’s cube « éponge » pour vous montrer comment mon esprit fonctionne.

Quel est cet esprit dont je vous parle ? Ce n’est pas quelque chose que l’on peut voir, et je ne crois pas que c’est juste une éponge multicolore. C’est des émotions, des pensées, de la raison, de la perception, de la mémoire, un « flot de conscience », etc. En fait, c’est tout ce qui fait une personne. Les philosophes, les scientifiques, les écrivains, les artistes ont tous exploré l’esprit. Parler de l’esprit de quelqu’un est une façon de parler de lui, un autoportrait qui va au-delà du physique de cet personne ; cette personne est sûrement plus qu’un visage ou qu’un corps.


Vidéo d'Invader : http://friendswelove.com/video/off-the-wall-invader/
Expo aux Lazarides Gallery : http://www.space-invaders.com/lowfi0.html (p.s. : cliquez sur l'image pour voir les autres..!)
Autres expos : http://www.space-invaders.com/exhibitions.html

Sandy Skoglund : Radioactive Cats

1- Words / ideas / feelings that come to mind...

Creepy, odd, depressing, awkward.

2- This photo is part of a series called "Family Portrait"... What kind of is it ?! (it's a photographic portrait, but it's also...)

...But it's also a metaphor of the family. All the photos are kind of creepy but they also show a familiar environnement with normal people or normal animals but with strange behaviors or in unclassical positions.

3- What does it show (describe the various elements, the situation, the atmosphere, etc...) ?

The photo shows bright green cats in what seems to be a kitchen. There are everywhere and there is also this old couple who doesn't look very disturbs by cats. But the environnement (walls, table, chairs...) is all grey. Only the cats make the contrast. That's depressing !

Moreover the animals seem to be very hungry ! I mean, they are sniffing everywhere like if they were searching for food, there is a slight touch blood on the chair (which is down and broken by the way) and it looks like they were waiting for this poor old couple to die to finally eat them !...

4- What are the themes ? (Ugliness...)

The themes could be : creepiness, awkwardness, deathness (Am I inventing a word ?)...

5- What is the "message" (if any) ?

I think the message is... don't paint your kitchen in grey and don't buy cats !

But seriously I think it give us an image of what could happen to us if we don't enjoy life.

6- What, based on this example, is the purpose of (this work of) art ?

My guess is that Art exists to make us reflect about our own life and eachother's. And what it's gonna be if we don't do anything.

A World Of Opposites...

How we see ourselves is conditioned by the images around us. This images reflect and reinforce in our minds societies values.
Game : take photos of the world around you (adverts, pictures, places, things, events... but not reel people please ! ) on the theme of contrasts.
- Ugly : Beautiful
- Weak : Strong
- Dumb : Smart
- Nasty : Nice
- Ill : Healthy
- Bad : Good
- Quiet : Loud
- Hot : Cold
- Etc...
Put your pictures on the blog with comments.
We often think in terms of opposites, like "ugly" vs "beautiful". Beauty is perhaps in the eye of beholder, but advertises reinforce our simplistic-binary-vision of the world, to condition our way of seeing things ; we end up thinking in stereotypes... Should we not nuance of vision of things ? Are people just "ugly" or "beautiful". Our way of seeing others can be destructive of others... When looking at a portrait or someone's self-portrait, go beyond juging a person by their appearence. Who they are is more important than what they look like. Ask yourselves : what can I learn from a person appearence ? How is his/her life, his/her feelings "written" on his/her face ?

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Raymond Briggs

1°) What is his profession ?
Raymond Briggs is a graphic novelist and a cartoonist.

2°) How important is it to him ?
Briggs lives for his job, it's very important to him.

3°) What is his house like ?
His house is the messiest house of the world. There are drawing and papers everywhere, even on his house's walls and on his furnitures.

4°) How does his home reflect his personnality ?
Briggs litterally lives in his job, his passion. All of his creations are a part of him and they are on each spot of his house, so there's a part of his personnality on each spot of his house.

5°) How does he talk about himself, his parents, the characters he has invented ?
Raymond Briggs doesn't like to talk about him but when talking about his parents, especially his mother, we can see that he his very sad because they were very close. That's why he created characters to represent them.

Lyrics of "Je suis comme je suis" Jacques Prevert

I am as I am
I am made like this
When I want to laugh
Yes I'm laughing out loud
I love the one who loves me
Is that my fault
If it's not the same
That I love each time
I am as I am
I am made like this
What do you want more
What do you want from me

I am made to please
And can't change anything
My hells are to high
My hips are too huntche
My boops way too hard
And bags under my eyes
And after
What does it do to you
I am as I am
I please who I please
What does it do to you

What happened to me
Yes I have loved someone
Yes somebody has loved me
As children love each other
Simply know how to love
Love, love...
Why asking me
I am here to please you
And can't change anything.

The Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square

The Fourth Plinth is in the north-west of Trafalgar Square, in central London. Built in 1841, it was originally intended for an equestrian statue but was empty for many years. It is now the location for specially commissioned artworks.

My Self-portrait

This is a photography of me (Lisa Desjobert). It represents my nose, my cheeks and my lips painted with chocolate. I am trying to show that I'm greedy. So you now know about me that I loooove nutel** (not to mention the brand). On this photo, I'm 15 and I'm quite in a good mood ! Hope this make you smile !

Analysing a (self-) portrait

Medium (Oil, watercolour, gouache, photograph, etc)
Size, colours, shapes, texture, light + shade
Style ("school") : cubist, expressionist, surrealist, dadaist, impressionist...
How is the subject treated ? (the "atmosphere")
What do you think the artist tried to say ?
About himself ? What do we learn about his personnality ?
What have others said about the portrait ?
When the artist did the portrait, how old was he, what was his situation ? Are his circumstances revealed in the portrait ?
For whom was the portrait intended ?
What are your thoughts, memories, emotions (association of ideas) when looking at the portrait ?

Artists write about painting portraits….

The distance from the chin to the nostrils makes up a third of the face. It is the same from the nostrils to the eyebrows, and again from the eyebrows to the hairline. From one ear to the other, the distance is the same as from the eyebrows to the chin. The width of the mouth is the same as that from the middle of the lips to the chin.
Leonardo da Vinci

Biography of my favourite artist

My favourite artist is Salvador Dali (with an accent on the i). He was a spanish surrealist artist but also a sculptor and a screenwriter. He was born on May 11, in 1904, in Catalonia, Spain.

When Dali got his bachelor he went in the School of Fine Arts of San Fernando, but even if he was very gifted, he was expelled from there because he stated that no one in there was smart enough to examine him.

In 1926, he made his first trip to Paris where he met with Pablo Picasso. This one had already heard favorable reports about Dali from Joan Miro.

Three years later he came back to Paris for the shooting of "Un chien andalou" and met with the Surrealists : Tristan Tzara, Paul Eluard and his wife, Gala. He had dreamed and drawed her before they met, they'll never leave eachother.

1929 had been a decisive year for him because he integrated officially the surrealist movement.

One year later, his has been considered as crazy because he wanted to kill himself.

In 1932, he went to the States for participate to his first surrealist exposition and had a triumphal sucess. Then, it's the beginning of the methode paranoid-critic which wants to cretinized the world.

After his exile to New York between 1939 and 1948, his came back to his beloved Catalonia were he drew criticism. He'll practise it until the end of his life. Late in his career, he integrated in his paintings the gigantism, the pointillism, the tachism... Well, all the possible words ended by -ism.

Dali was also interested in other arts like cinema, photography, mode or publicity. He was passioned by science and in particular by the "relativity theory" of Albert Einstein that he showed in the painting "The Persistence of Memory", most known as the "melting clocks".

In 1982, Dali became Marquis of Pùbol and lived in the castle that he offered to his wife ; unfortunnetly, she died the same year, destroying the artist. In 1984, a fire broke out in his bedroom, in unclear circumstances.

On January 23, 1989, he died of an heart failure, at the age of 84, and was burried in the crypt of his Teatre Museu in Figueres.

Some of Dali's most known paintings :

-The Dream

-The Persistence of Memory

-Metamorphosis of Narcissus

-The Hallucinogenic Toraedor...

Some of Dali's most know creations :

-The Chupa Chups logo

-Rinoceronte vestido con puntillas

-The Mae West room...

My favourite artist's self-portrait

So, those are the self-portraits that I've choosen of my favourite artist : Salvador Dali. I've choosen two photos because they "work" together. They're named "Self Portrait as Mona Lisa"(on the right) and "LHOOQ"(on the left).

Those are (unfortunatly) not paintings, because Dali never paints any self-portrait, so those are photographies taken by Philipe Halsman, Dali's collaborator who decided to make a book named "Dali Moustache" in 1954. The most known is "LHOOQ" (taken in 1919) because it's a very controversial picture. Moreover, we still don't know yet what is the tittle meaning. Some tell that it's supposed to be read in english like the word "look", and some are think that it should be read in french which would give the sentence "Elle a chaud au cul"*. They are much more ideas about the tittle but it would take to much place to write them all.

I loooove this portrait because it was bold to made this : Mona Lisa is such a beautiful and well-known picture that it's almost a crime to make a "parody" of it. But it's very funny and mysterious, just like Dali actually, that's why it became my favourite portrait.

Questions about the exposition.

1-Why did Gisèle Freud choose to take only portraits of well-known people ?
2-Why has the girl on the picture "disepeared" ?
3-What's disturbing about Katherine Marx's Photos ?
4-Is the "black and white" style represent sadness or happiness ?
5-Why did Marc Le Mené choose to make his pictures misterious ?
6-Can a portrait represents the personnality of the models ?
7-How can we show sadness on a picture ? Is there a special light ? A special colour ?
8-Why did all those artists choose to be artists ?
9-How can we show mouvement on a photo ?
10-What's special on Ouka Lélé photo ?