Identity Without Face

Abstract

The realm of "faceless" portraiture is a new craze in the photography world, becoming an increasingly popular challenge that photographers, both amateur and professionals alike, are trying to master. The faceless portrait is a creative image that allows the imagination to interpret observations, small and large details of the scene without a person's facial expression to dictate the mood of an image. When the author first started this project, the goal was to challenge the basis of traditional portrait photography; to throw out the idea that the face was the only way to represent someone's identity. The author shows that the face is just one of many ways to depict identity. The subject of identity has been a hot topic in many of the conversations during the college experience and it has been important to the author in the search of her own identity. The goal was to ultimately translate those conversations into photographs.