100 Faces of Emotion


These are faces from across the globe and across history that represent the range of human emotions.

This collection of images features a set of 100 faces representing the range of human emotions. The faces include iconic images rather than necessarily depictions of known persons. While there are some intentional cross-overs from the ‘Faces of Humanity’ such as the Mona Lisa, for the most part the list is distinct. The main consideration was choosing a list that gave a relatively comprehensive range of facial emotions.

The criteria for choosing faces of emotion was not as strict as for the ‘Faces of Humanity’, but we did take the following orientations into account:

Summary of Social Criteria for Choosing Faces

  1. A relative global spatial spread;
  2. A relative temporal spread across human history;
  3. A balance of gender;
  4. A relative balance of age;
  5. An iconic or identifiable representation of a named person; and
  6. A range of emotions across the chosen spectrum.

100 Faces of Emotion

(NB. Country refers to modern nation-state equivalence)

 Period

   Face

Dates

Country

Notes

000s

1. Traianus Decius

c.250

Italy

By an unknown artist, this sculpture depicts Caesar Gaius Messius Quintus Traianus Decius Augustus (c.201-51), head of the Roman Empire. It is currently located in the Capitoline Museum in Italy.

 

2. Dionysus

c.250-450

Egypt

This textile likely comes from a necropolis in the Upper Egyptian city of Panopolis. It is currently held in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna.

 

3. Sigiriya Maiden

c.479-497

Sri Lanka

Fresco rock-image from the ancient city of Sigiriya, the Lion’s Rock. The woman depicted is a member of a group of figures now called the Cloud Maidens.

 

4. Bodhisattva, Gandhara

c.5th C

Pakistan

Cared in the Grandharan region sometime between the 4th and 6th Centuries. It currently resides in the Art Institute of Chicago.

 

5. Theodora

c.547

Italy

This mosaic depicts Theodora, the empress of the Byzantine Empire. The mosaic is preserved in the Basilica of San Vitale.

1000s

6. Al Sabah collection

c.1101

Iran

Unknown artist, possibly of the Safavid dynasty, currently held in the al Sabah Collection in Dar al Athar al Islamiyyah at the Amricani Cultural Centre, Kuwait City

 

7. Christ Pantocrator

c.1261

Turkey

A mosaic of Christ composed by an unknown artist on the wall of the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, Turkey.

 

8. Madonna of Borgo San Lorenzon

c.1290

Italy

Giotto di Bondone paints Mother Mary in this artwork currently housed in Pieve di San Lorenzo.

 

9. Blue-hatted Knight

c.1320-25

Italy

Simone Martini depicts a scene capturing the Miracle of the Resurrected Child on the wall of the Cappella di San Martino, in Assisi. The blue-hatted knight is one of many character looking on the scene with various looks of amazement and disbelief.

 

10. Madonna’s Annunciation

c.1333

Italy

Simone Martini and Lippo Memmi created this artwork called The Annunciation with Saint Margaret and Saint Ansanus currently held in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence

 

11. Giovanni di Nicolao Arnolfini

1434

Netherlands

Jan van Eyck paints the Arnolfini Portrait, widely considered one of the most complex works in the history of Western art. It is currently in the British Gallery.

 

12. Madonna del Latte

c.1485

Italy

Ambrogio da Fossano painted this image now held in the Museo Poldi Pezzoli

 

13. Mater Dolorosa

c.1485

Italy

Painted by Baldassare d’Este and currently held in the Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya.

 

14. Venus

c.1485

Italy

Sandro Botticelli painted the Birth of Venus which is currently on display at the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Italy.

1500s

15. Lisa del Giocondo

c1504

Italy

Renaissance master Leonardo da Vinci’s most famous painting, the Mona Lisa.

 

16. Young Venetian Woman

1505

Italy

Albrecht Dürer painted this image on his second trip to Italy

 

17. Ridiculer

c.1510-35

Netherlands

Painted by Hieronymus Bosh and currently housed in the Museum of Fine Arts in Ghent, Belgium.

 

18. Tax collector

c.1525-30

Netherlands

Flemish artist Quentin Massey depicts a tax collector in a highly unflattering manner.

 

19. Jeronimus Sandelin

c.1530

Netherlands

Jan Gossaert paints Portrait of a Merchant depicting, possibly, Jeronimus Sandeline. It is currently in the National Gallery of Art, Washington DC, USA.

 

20. Orazio Vecellio

c.1550-65

Italy

Renaissance master known as Titian paints his adult son’s face as part of an artwork called ‘Allegory of Time’, an image that include his elderly face and that of his youthful nephew.

 

21. Sofonisba Anguissola

1556

Italy

Self portrait of Sofonisba Anguissola and currently held in the Lancut Palace, Poland.

 

22. Judith

c.1598-9

Italy

Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio paints Judith Beheading Holofernes, a painted currently held in the Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Antica.

1600s

23. Penitent Magdalene

c.1615-16

Italy

Artemisia Gentileschi depicts Mary Magdalene as a strong female character in this painted currently held in the Marc A. Seidner Collection, in Los Angeles.

 

24. ‘A lady with flower and fly whisk’

c.1630

India

Islamic miniature from an unknown artist of Mughal India. Currently held in the David Collection of Copenhagen.

 

25. Pope Innocent X

1650

Spain

A painting of Pope Innocent X by the Spanish master Diego Vela?zquez

1700s

26. Armenian Girl

c.1650-1700

Iran

This oil painting is by an unknown artist of an unknown subject. It is currently held in the Museum of Islamic Art in Qatar.

 

27. Woman dressed as Diana

1725

Spain

Painted by Pere Crusells, this painting of an unknown model is called Woman with the Attributes of Diana.

 

28. Louise Elisabeth Vigée Le Brun

1782

France

This image is a self-portrait painted by Louise Elisabeth Vigée Le Brun, court painter to Marie Antoinette. 

1800s

29. Old Woman

1824-5

Spain

Francisco Goya paints this haunting image of an old woman. It currently resides in Princeton University’s Art Museum.

 

30. Gustave Corbet

c.1843

France

A dramatic self-portrait by Gustave Corbet aptly referred to by the name The Desperate Man.

 

31. White Cloud

1844-5

UK

George Catlin paints a portrait of White Cloud of the Iowas, while the elder was touring Europe with a circus after being evicted from his ancestral homelands in what is now Iowa, USA.

 

32. Shirai Gonpachi

1860

Japan

Woodblock master Utagawa kuniyoshi depicts the actor Ichikawa Ichizo as Shirai Gonpachi, from a series called ‘Mirrors for Collage Pictures in Modern Style’.

 

33. Victorine Meurent

1863

France

Edouard Manet paints the Victorine Meurent as she models as Olympia, a female nude who returns the male gaze. The painting is currently held in the Musée d'Orsay, Paris.

 

34. Nanna Krohg

1880-1

Norway

Nanna Krohg is painted on her deathbed by her brother Christian Krogh.

 

35. Spanish Blacksmith

1882

Spain

Ernst Josephson painted three blacksmiths as part of his folk-life series on peasants and workers. This painted is called The Spanish Smiths.

 

36. Vincent Van Gogh

1889

Netherlands

This image bears the decidedly practical name ‘A Self-portrait by Vincent Van Gogh with a Bandaged Ear’.

 

37. Ferdinand Hodler

1890

Switzerland

The Swiss artist Ferdinand Hodler depicts himself in the grip of a ‘nigh hag’ in an eerie painting called Night, currently housed at the Museum of Fine Art Berne.

 

38. A Bedouin Man

c.1890

France

French artist Anna Clémence Berthe Abraham Worms painted an unknown Bedouin man in an image that is now held in the Pinacoteca do Estado de São Paulo.

 

39. Yi Chae

1892

South Korea

An unknown artist depicts the Korean scholar Yi Chae. This artwork is designated a national treasure and is held in the National Museum of Korea.

 

40. Rosa Luxemburg

1893

Switzerland

Rosa Luxemburg is captured by an unknown photographer as a 22-year-old student in Switzerland, five year before she moves to Germany and is plunged into revolutionary struggle.

 

41. A Berber bride

c.1896

Morocco

Josep Tapiró paints an unknown Berber bride on the eve of her wedding ceremony. The watercolour is currently hsoued in Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya.

1900s

42. Emma Goldman

1901

USA

The rebound anarchist Emma Goldman is photographed by police as a mugshot after she was arrested for allegedly planning to assassinate President McKinley, only to be later released without charge.

 

43. Zinaida Serebriakov

1909

Ukraine

This painting is a self-portrait composed by Russian artist Zinaida Serebriakova. Painted when she was twenty-five the artwork is called At the Dressing Table.

 

44. A dancer

1911

Australia

Russian born artist George Lambet depicts a woman in his artwork Portrait of a Lady (The Dancer).

 

45. Stanley Spencer

1914

UK

A twenty-three-year-old Stanley Spencer paints himself at home in the decaying Georgian house in Cookham he rented as a studio. It is currently in the Tate Gallery, London.

 

46. Akizuki Miyuki

1914

Japan

Uemura Shoen paints Akizuki Miyuki, the heroine of the Joruri drama ‘Sho-utsushi Asagao-banashi’. It is currently housed in the Adachi Museum of Art.

 

47. Mihipeka Wairama

1915

New Zealand

Charles Frederick Goldie’s paints an elderly Maori woman with traditional tattoos. The painting is called No Koora Te Cigaretti.

 

48. Nakatani Tsuru

1920

Japan

Goyo Hashiguchi created this image of his lover Nakatani Tsuru and called it Woman in a Summer Garment. It resides in Toledo Museum of Art.

 

49. Florence Owens Thompson

1936

USA

Florence Owens Thompson, a destitute agricultural labourer and mother of seven, is photographed by Dorothea Lange. The iconic image is known as ‘Migrant Mother’.

 

50. La Malinche

c.1940

Mexico

This artwork depicts the Nahua woman known as La Malinche who became an interpreter and lover of Hernan Cortes during the conquest of the Aztec Empire. She is depicted here by Mexican artist Ramos Martinez.

 

51. Celia Johnson, Brief Encounter

1945

UK

Celia Johnson appears as the character Laura as part of David McLean’s film, Brief Encounter.

 

52. Albert Einstein

1951

USA

Arthur Sasse photographs Albert Einstein at the great scientist’s 72nd birthday celebration.

 

53. Janet Leigh, Psycho

1960

USA

Actress Janet Leigh plays the character Marion Crane just before she is murdered in Alfred Hitchcock’s film, Psycho.

 

54. Miles Davis

1964

Denmark

Miles Davis as photographed by Jan Persson while playing at a concert in Copenhagen

 

55. Larry Wayne Chaffin

1965

Vietnam

German photographer Horst Fass captured this famous image of a contradictory invading American participating in the war on Vietnam. The young man was later identified as Larry Wayne Chaffin.

 

56. Keir Dullea, 2001: A Space Odyssey

1968

USA

American actor Keir Dullea as astronaut David Bowman in Stanley Kubrick's 1968 film 2001: A Space Odyssey.

 

57. Wodaabe Yaake dancer

1981

Niger

This photo, taken by Carol Beckwith and Angela Fisher, shows the winner of a Wodaabe Yaake courtship dance, a tribal group of cattle-hearders who cross the Sahel.

 

58. Sharbat Gula

1984

Afghanistan

Steve McCurry photographing a woman later identified as Sharbat Gula.

 

59. Lucien Freud

1985

 

An expressionist self-portrait, oil on canvas, by Lucien Freud in private collection

 

60. R. Lee Ermey, Full Metal Jacket

1987

UK

R. Lee Ermey plays Gunnery Sergeant Hartman in Stanley Kubrick’s film Full Metal Jacket.

 

61. Butho performer, Baraka

1990

Japan

A Japanese Butoh performer in Tokyo is filmed as part of Ron Fricke’s Baraka.

 

62. Sima

1990

Armenia

Armineh Johannes took this photograph of a 106-year-old woman during the Nagorno-Karabakh War between Azerbaijan and ethnic Armenians.

 

63. Mikhail Gorbachev

1991

Russia

Mikhail Gorbachev gives a televised speech on Christmas Day announcing his retirement from politics, with the Soviet Union being formally dissolved the next day.

 

64. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Terminator 2

1991

USA

Arnold Schwarzenegger plays T800 in James Cameron’s epic sequel, Terminator 2: Judgement Day.

 

65. Cathy Freeman

1994

Australia

Bill McAuley photographs the aboriginal Australian athlete Cathy Freeman.

 

66. Rena Owen, Once Were Warriors

1994

New Zealand

Maori actor Rena Owen plays the character Beth Heke in Lee Tamahori’s film, Once Were Warriors.

 

67. Nguyen Nhu Quynh, Cyclo

1995

Vietnam

Nguyen Nhu Quynh plays a gang boss in Tr?n Anh Hùng film Cyclo.

 

68. Mitsunori Isaki, Dreams

1995

Japan

Mitsunori Isaki plays a young Akira Kurosawa in the director’s film Dreams.

 

69. Jim Carrey, The Truman Show

1998

USA

Jim Carrey plays Truman Burbank in Peter Weir’s film, The Truman Show.

 

70. Forest Whitaker, Ghost Dog

1999

USA

Forest Whitaker plays Ghost Dog in Jim Jarmusch’s film named after its lead character.

2000s

71. Patrick Fischler, Mullholland Drive

2001

USA

The actor Patrick Fischler plays Dan, a character in David Lynch’s film Mullholland Drive.

 

72. Leandro Firmino, City of God

2002

Brazil

Leandro Firmino is filmed portraying the brutal gangster character Li'l Zé for Fernando Meirelles and Kátia Lund film City of God (Cidade de Deus).

 

73. Face of Tomorrow, Sao Paulo

2004

Brazil

South African photographer Mike Mike composed this photograph from the first 100 women he could get to pose for portraits for him in Sao Paulo and merging them together into an average person.

 

74. Roberto Benigni

2005

Italy

The Italian actor and comedian Roberto Benigni is playfully photographed by Henry Leutwyler for the French magazine, Madame Figaro.

 

75. Jocelyn Wildenstein

2006

USA

Jocelyn Wildenstein (née Périsset), New City socialite who has had extensive facial surgery

 

76. Cassandra Malangarri Baker, Ten Canoes

2006

Australia

Cassandra Malangarri Baker plays Munandjarra, the third wife of the warrior Ridjimiraril, one of the ancient heroes of Ten Canoes, a film by Rolf de Heer set in Arnhem Land, Australia before the white invasion.

 

77. Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight

2008

USA

Heath Ledger as the Joker Christopher Nolan’s contribute to the Batman franchise, The Dark Knight.

 

78. Kelabit Woman

2009

Malaysia

A Kelabit woman photographed by Paul James.

 

79. Diane Sawyer

2009

USA

Diane Sawyer prepares to speak to camera on her first day as anchor for the American Broadcasting Company’s flagship ABC World News.

 

80. A Russian Honouor Guard

2009

Russia

A Russian honour guard and member of the 154th Commandant’s Regiment welcomes US Admiral Mike Mullen who attends a wreath-laying ceremony at Moscow’s Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. The photograph was captured by Chad J. McNeeley.

 

81. Isaach de Bankolé, The Limits of Control

2009

Spain

Ivorian actor Isaach de Bankolé plays the Lone Man in Jim Jarmusch’s film, The Limits of Control.

 

82. Recycling worker

2010

Brazil

Paul James captures a photograph of a recycling worker as part of the Chocolatão project in Porto Alegre, Brazil.

 

83. Lubna Azabal, Incendies

2010

Lebanon

Lubna Azabal plays the character Nawal Marwan in Denis Villeneauve’s film Incendies.

 

84. Mark Zuckerberg

2011

USA

This self-satisfied photo of Mark Zuckerberg was captured by a photographer working for Associated Press.

 

85. A Mursi tribe member, Samsara

2011

Ethiopia

A member of the Mursi tribe poses for the camera of Ron Fricke’s film, Samsara.

 

86. Child in Mutuwal Settlement

2011

Sri Lanka

A child in the informal settlement of Mutuwal in the port district of Colombo is photographed by Paul James.

 

87. Child-soldier, now student

2011

Sri Lanka

A former child solider turned student is photographed in the yard of Oddusuddan School, near Mullaitivu, Sri Lanka by Paul James.

 

88. A Brazilian dancer

2012

Brazil

Paul James photographs a dancer performing at the Rio de Janiero United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development.

 

89. Anwar Congo, The Act of Killing

2012

Indonesia

War criminal Anwar Congo as filmed in Joshua Oppenheimer’s documentary, The Act of Killing.

 

90. Alek Wek, Benneton Ad

2013

USA

Alek Wek poses for photographers to appear as part of fashion corporation Benneton’s advertising campaign about the ‘iconic value of color’.

 

91. Adèle Exarchopoulos, Blue is the Warmest Colour

2013

France

Adèle Exarchopoulos as the fictional character Adèle as part of Abdellatif Kechiche’s film Blue is the Warmest Colour (La Vie d'Adèle)

 

92. Song Xuxia

2013

China

Song Xuxia is photographed by Wang Yixuan after being injured in an earthquake in Gansu province, China.

 

93. Reda Kateb, Far From Men

2014

Morocco

Reda Kateb plays Mohamed in David Oelhoffen’s film Far from Men (Loin des Hommes).

 

94. Peter Dinklage, Game of Thrones

2014

Malta

Peter Dinklage plays Tyrion Lannister in Game of Thrones, specifically episode 10 of season four directed by Alex Graves.

 

95. Toni Morrison

c.2014-15

USA

The great African-American novelist Toni Morrison is photographed by Peter Devlin.

 

96. A Dismaland Stewart

2015

UK

A steward standing outside Banksy’s Dismaland exhibition near Bistol.

 

97. A Rohingya man

2015

Indonesia

Romeo Gacad photographs a group of Rohingya men on the back of a truck as they are being transported across Langsa, Ache province of Indonesia.

 

98. Düsseldorf carnival goer

2015

Germany

A participant in the Düsseldorf carnival as photographed by Federico Gamarini.

 

99. Serena Williams

2015

France

Photographed by Jason Cairnduff, Serena Williams scores a point against Lucie Safarova during the 2015 French Open.

 

100. Cosplay Model

2015

Japan

A cosplay model poses for a photograph for eBay retailer Vicent-Boutique.