Mocking faces: caricature
In English, the word caricature comes from the Italian caricare, meaning ‘to load’. It was first used in the late seventeenth century by Sir Thomas Browne, who noted that “When men’s faces are drawn with resemblance to some other animals, the Italians call it, to be drawn in caricatura.”
Caricature drawing was initially promoted as an elite pastime and a fun activity for the upper classes, but by the late eighteenth century it was also being used by professional artists to draw attention to both social and political issues, becoming a popular mouthpiece through which to challenge and call out authority figures. Caricature art is most associated with the exaggeration and distortion of faces and bodies, but can also involve the use of symbolic imagery, as observed in Sir Thomas Browne’s comment on humans and animals.
The artistic choice to exagerrate the face for various effects - humourous, dramatic, and so on - can be seen in cultures around the world.
Souvenir theatre mask
China, early 20th century
Many Chinese theatrical arts use masks, and miniature versions continue to be a popular souvenir. In some performances masks are switched or altered regularly to depict changing expressions. Theatrical masks often appear caricature-like. This example depicts an angry man with exaggerated red skin, frown and bulging veins.
Gelede mask
Nigeria, 19th – 20th century
Gelede dances are performed by Yoruba people, originally to celebrate or placate the ‘mothers’, elderly and ancestral women believed to wield great power for good or bad. Gelede masks can depict animals, technology, deities and social classes. Some have a satirical purpose: this mask, with a missionary style hat, may have been used to make fun of Europeans or converts to Christianity.
Anamorphic mirror
London, early 19th century
In the 19th century optical toys used drawings of distorted faces which appear normal when viewed in a curved mirror. Is caricature a matter of perspective? Like Hogarth’s illustration of John Wilkes (next page), what’s supposed to be insulting can be considered flattering by someone else. What some people think is funny is deemed offensive by others.
