Elisabeth Daynès

Race, Sex, and Human Evolution

A three-part lecture series exposing biases that underlie the study of our evolutionary past

Ms. Elisabeth Daynès - Director and Founder, Atelier Daynès, Paris

Original flesh: what did extinct humans really look like?

January 26, 8:00pm - Frick Fine Arts Auditorium

In 1913, Dr. Henri-Martin decided to give a face to the skull of the Neanderthal woman he discovered at the site of La Quina (France). With the sculptor Charles Bousquet he reconstructed step-by-step, with fine layers or clay, this individual’s facial muscles and then skin. But the facial features were largely conjectural. As Henri-Martin wrote: “the eyes, the nose and the ears not having traces were inspired by the traits observed on the chimpanzees.” In truth, his reconstruction was informed by the idea at the time that placed Neanderthal not with humans, but among the non-human primates. Indeed, rather than being scientifically based, Henri-Martin’s reconstruction was a philosophical one! By combining science and art, I strive to produce a new vision of long-gone human relatives. My intention is to present prehistoric humans as they really were, not as products of racial, sex, and gender prejudice. In the end, I hope to capture not only the dignity of individuals, but also the lost variety of the human family.

For more information go here!