The word is often used in inverted commas, indicating that the term is being used loosely or in a non-traditional sense. What I am missing here is a more in-depth discussion of what constitutes a portrait in the authors’ eyes. Many aspects and questions around portraiture are touched upon linked with discussions around changes in social interaction such as Facebook and how portraits play a role in connecting us with our virtual community. The first essay ‘One.2.Many: Portraits by Numbers’ (Donna Gustafson & Susan Sidlauskas) serves as an introduction and provides an overview of the questions the exhibition and publication are addressing: from the influence of photography and social media on portraiture, to the social roles portraits play and some thoughts on the relationships between maker, sitter and viewer portraits as objects in social interchange and as ‘objects of desire’ are cited as being part of the explorations of the book. Likewise there is a predominance of lens-based works, which make up a significant number of the illustrations and focus of the essays.

Although the authors include in their survey portraits from the late 18th century onwards, the emphasis is firmly on the 20th and 21st century. The authors of Striking Resemblance set out to ‘explore the changing face of portraiture in two and three dimensions, and as still and moving images from 1800 to the present.’ The book offers four essays exploring single, double and group portraits. This work is part of a collaboration between the Zimmerli Art Museum and the Department of Art History at Rutgers University, which encompassed two multifaceted academic projects and resulted in an exhibition and this accompanying publication drawing from the Zimmerli Museum’s collection, enhanced by a significant number of loans. The Changing Art of Portraiture' by Donna Gustafson and Susan Sidlauskas with contributions from Lee Siegel.

Portraiture essay