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"These ten prints are based on the work of Johann Caspar Lavater (1741-1801), a Swiss theologian and poet active during the age of Enlightenment. In 1775, he published his most famous book, Essays on Physiognomy Designed to Promote the Knowledge and Love of Mankind. The book promoted analysis of human character based on outward physical characteristics. The "scientific" promise was undermined by Lavater's pointed moral interpretation: he equated physical beauty (which he defined according to northern European norms) with moral goodness and closeness to God.
The faulty logic and racist implications of this theory made it controversial even during Lavater's lifetime and it was dismissed as a pseudoscience by the early 19th century. Before that, however, translations of the book were published in France, Holland England, Italy and the United States, its popularity due in part to the 800 lustrations and beautiful production quality. Curiously, Lavater was so confident in physiognomy that he sold his book with a money-back guarantee.
While it is easy to feel superior to Lavater's ideas today, the practice of drawing faulty conclusions about people based on outward appearances is not obsolete. In my own work, I explore the different ways people have devised to understand their place in the world, often through the use of rituals or spiritual practice. Lavater's method was more intellectual and ultimately absurd - but it represents another facet of this human endeavor to make sense of the world." - Mark Calderon
click on an image to enlarge:
DETACHED, 2003
Solarplate intaglio, 19.5 x 26.5 inches, Edition of 10
$450.
FACES INCAPABLE OF GREATNESS, 2003
Solarplate intaglio 19.5 x 26.5 inches Edition of 10
$450.
HEIDEGGER, 2003
Solarplate intaglio 19.5 x 26.5 inches Edition of 10
$450.
MILDNESS, WISDOM & GOODNESS, 2003
Solarplate intaglio 19.5 x 26.5 inches Edition of 10
$450.
PROFILES FROM FANCY, 2003
Solarplate intaglio 19.5 x 26.5 inches Edition of 10
$450.
RAYNAL, 2003
Solarplate intaglio 19.5 x 26.5 inches Edition of 10
$450.
SIX MESSIAHS, 2003
Solarplate intaglio 19.5 x 26.5 inches Edition of 10
$450.
THE SNEERING CONTEMPT OF ENVY, 2003
Solarplate intaglio 19.5 x 26.5 inches Edition of 10
$450.
TWELVE FACES OF IDIOTS, 2003
Solarplate intaglio 19.5 x 26.5 inches Edition of 10
$450.
WEAKNESS, PRESUMPTION, INSENSIBILITY, 2003
Solarplate intaglio 19.5 x 26.5 inches Edition of 10
$450.
Click here to see earlier, available work by Mark Calderon: More Work
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