Death masks of 28 cultural and scientific figures on display in University of Tartu Art Museum

The exhibition dedicated to memories and values of life, “Face of Death. Life’s Vigour Through Death Masks” is open to visitors in the University of Tartu Art Museum from 14 May.

“On the one hand, death masks show without embellishment the evanescence of all things, while on the other hand, they glorify the life of the deceased that is worthy of eternal memory,” said Ken Ird, curator of the exhibition.

Masks document the person’s face in the most honest manner as it was immediately after the last breath, thereby expressing the temporality of life. Also, due to immediate contact with the face of the deceased, they are a kind of cultural relics, charged with the vital force of the deceased.

The exhibition “Face of Death. Life’s Vigour Through Death Masks” displays a third of the death masks from the collections of Estonian museums, and brings together in one room the lives of 28 significant figures of culture and science. Including, for example, Alexander Pushkin and Immanuel Kant, A. H. Tammsaare and Oskar Luts, Netty Pinna and Kalju Komissarov.

The oldest mask on exhibition is the one taken from Immanuel Kant 217 years ago, and the most recent is the death mask of Kalju Komissarov who passed away four years ago.

Living practice

The exhibition also introduces the practice of taking death masks as works of art. In a video interview, Ülle Konovalov, the make-up artist of Ugala Theatre, talks about the experience of taking the death mask of the legendary Estonian theatre director. Visitors can see on the video how the impressions of the curators’ faces were taken and also touch the masks.

“While preparing for the exhibition, it was surprising to learn that the making of death masks is a living practice. This makes you look at death and the funeral customs in an entirely different way,” said curator Anu Rae.

The connection of deaths and masks dates back millennia to ancient Mediterranean cultures, where the face of the deceased was covered with a mask during funerary rituals. In Renaissance Italy in the 15th century, death masks started to be used as mementos of the dead. The 18th and especially the 19th century, when death masks were made both to express grief as well as for scientific purposes, could be considered the last height of the tradition of taking death masks in Europe.

By the 20th century, the practice of taking death masks from persons whose life and achievements were to be remembered and appreciated took hold in the western cultural space. These days, the tradition is still kept alive by a few funeral agencies and mainly by artistic and theatrical figures.

Curators: Ken Ird, Anu Rae

Designer: Kristjan Suits

Graphic designer: Katre Rohumaa (Tallinn City Theatre)

Project manager: Ken Ird

Team: Anne Arus, Karoliina Kalda, Tiiu Kreegipuu, Ele Loonde, Külli Lupkin, Tanel Nõmmik, Kristiina Ribelus, Külli Valk

Further information:

Ken Ird, Curator of the Collections Department, University of Tartu Museum, curator and project manager of the exhibition, 522 6980, ken.ird@ut.ee

Anu Rae, Curator of the Collections Department, University of Tartu Museum, curator of the exhibition, anu.rae@ut.ee

Information sent by: Ele Loonde Communication Specialist, University of Tartu Museum 5556 0497 ele.loonde@ut.ee