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Figure 7: Étude du méchanisme et de l'expression du muscle frontal chez un vieillard: à droit, attention; à gauche, repos — Guillaume-Benjamin-Amand Duchenne

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Written by: Thomas RossiSenior Specialist · Modern & Contemporary Art
Miniature Painting · Catalogue no. 20223
Guillaume-Benjamin-Amand Duchenne

Figure 7: Étude du méchanisme et de l’expression du muscle frontal chez un vieillard: à droit, attention; à gauche, repos

StatusReference work · Not for sale
Held byCleveland Museum of Art
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Duchenne embarked on the first scientific, systematic exploration of the physiology of human facial expression and hoped, through photographs of his experiments, to teach artists how to portray those emotions. The experiments were performed by applying electrical stimulation to a single muscle on one side of the face, so that the viewer could clearly see the impact of the muscular contraction.

Artist / MakerGuillaume-Benjamin-Amand Duchenne
Datec. 1856, printed 1862
MediumAlbumen print from glass plate negative
DimensionsImage: 16.2 x 11.9 cm (6 3/8 x 4 11/16 in.); Paper: 23.5 x 17.9 cm (9 1/4 x 7 1/16 in.); Mounted: 41.2 x 27.4 cm (16 1/4 x 10 13/16 in.)
DepartmentPhotography
TypePhotograph
About the Artist

Guillaume-Benjamin-Amand Duchenne (de Boulogne) (French, 1806–1875) Full biography →

Provenance & Source

Image & data: Cleveland Museum of Art, CC0 / Public Domain.

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