It provides a new perspective on the history of the medium examining the personalities both behind and in front of the camera, as well as the fascinating relationship between photographer and subject as revealed through the genre.

The Theatre of the Face is an engaging and authoritative commentary on the history of portrait photography by one of the world's leading photography critics. It provides a new perspective on the history of the medium examining the personalities both behind and in front of the camera, as well as the fascinating relationship between photographer and subject as revealed through the genre.Fully illustrated with over 300 black and white and colour photographs, it covers a broad range of styles and movements from early portraitists such as Edward SheriffCurtis to the wellknown work of seminal figures including Walker Evans, Cecil Beaton and August Sander,and contemporary portraiture by Thomas Ruff,Philip-Lorca di Corcia and Cindy Sherman.This book is an essential title for critics,students and photography enthusiasts.

Introduction

Chapter One

Retrospection and Clairvoyance

Portraits of the Early Twentieth Century

Chapter Two

Introversions of the Self

The Author in the Portrait 1900-1935

Chapter Three

Shades of Valour

Portraiture and the Makin9 of History 1930-1945

Chapter Four

The Sander Effect

Portraiture and the Exposure of the Masquerade

Chapter Five

Insiders and their Cultures

Portraits of Difference 197o-2ooo

Chapter Six

From Celebrities to Nonentities

Portraiture, Beauty and Death 1980 to the Present

Notes

Bibliography

Index