CubicCats

With this example I would like to touch on the idea of recognition to a greater degree. After seeing such an exaggerated, distorted caricature and still being able to immediately and assuredly recognize it and associate it to the subject the I decided to give the idea of what makes a person recognizable more thought. Though I am aware this is one of the most basic aspects of caricature and it has been analyzed fairly thoroughly by most, I still decided to talk about perhaps due to my fondness of of this particular caricature. This image deals particularly with a specific appearance of a temporary occurrence or state. That is to say the this appearance of Michael Jackson, the image that this picture is drawing from is both widely known and a definable, separated thing but also only existed for a short time in relation to public appearances (I will include an image of Micheal Jackson's appearance that this image embodies for reference). The hairstyle, the stubble on his face, the paleness of his skin, the pronounced cheekbones and his angular nose in its final stages of its apparently ongoing mutation are all clearly defined in this image. Not only that but these aspects are precisely what makes this image so indistinguishably Micheal Jackson. I partially chose this image because it is an exaggerated example of what I am talking about, the features of a persons face that make him distinguishable from others and naturally Micheal Jackson had one of the most distinguishable faces imaginable. Facial construction and human recognition are complicated, and well researched subjects in which discoveries are continually being made so I can't confidently make many assertions regarding these topics, but I do still like to critically examine the idea of each. The shape of the head is perhaps foremost in initial recognition and is also the basis for the general shape of the face. Features such as cheekbones, chin, nose, mouth, eyes, brow, forehead (and therefore hairline)and others all work in unison to create a unique and complex appearance. Skilled caricaturists naturally have a deep understanding of facial features but whats more impressive is their ability to distinguish these traits from one person to another as well as the ability to portray them in an exaggerated yet recognizable and familiar way all while in conjunction and harmony with the other altered aspects of the face to ultimately create a falsehood that yet totally and truthfully embodies the persons image of themselves not only in reality but also in their mind which is important due to the fact that a persons self image in his/her own mind may differ from their actual image. I may write more about this later.