Haunting 3D-printed death masks are like something out of Alien
Victoria Woollaston-Webber
Vespers will be on show in Fear and Love at The Design Museum from until April 23
Vespers is a collection of death masks by Neri Oxman and the Mediated Matter Group created for The New Ancient Collection by Stratasys. Traditionally made of wax or plaster, the death mask originated as a means of keeping the dead 'alive' through memory
Yoram Reshef
Vespers' death masks are not intended to memorialise the dead. They are designed to reveal "cultural heritage and speculate about the perpetuation of life, both cultural and biological"
Unlike their traditional, hand-made analogues, Vespers' designs are entirely data driven, digitally generated, additively manufactured, and— at times—biologically augmented explained Oxman
Oxman explained: 'Vespers expresses the intertwining of Fear and Love through the continuity of death and life. Vespers 'masks' five imaginary martyrs. Each martyr is memorialised three times, through sequential interpretations at three different moments: the past, the present, and the future'
Series one of Vespers looked to the past. Series two is listed as Present, the 'digital' world. The second series explores the transition between life and death, from past to present
Close bottom view of mask five
The distribution of colours across the 'crown of thorns' mask in the first series becomes internal nerve axons in its martyr's mask in the second series, as seen here
The custom of the death mask in the ancient world was believed to strengthen the spirit of the deceased and guard their soul from evil spirits on their way to the afterworld
Compilation view of the different masks in the second Vespers series
The shapes and colours of the masks in the second series are taken from the shapes and colours of the first series using spatial mapping algorithms
Front view of mask five
Close side view of mask one
Victoria Woollaston-Webber is a freelance journalist, editor and founder of science-led health, beauty and grooming sites, mamabella and MBman. She has more than a decades' experience in both online and print journalism, having written about tech and gadgets since day one for national papers, magazines and global brands. Victoria specialises in... Read more
TopicsDesign