Each of Mapes’ pieces are constructed from what he describes as “biographical DNA,” the little pieces of physical information he pieces together to create a finished portrait. Typically, this is a fairly simple process with Mapes gathering his photos, bits of hair, and handwriting samples from his living subject’s home and then organizing them into a portrait using test tubes, little baggies or pushpins. With the Dutch Masters series, he had to be a bit more resourceful.
Mapes begins each portrait by downloading copyright-free images from various museums’ websites. From there, he crops each image, zeroing in on certain features like an eyeball, fingertip or face before printing out dozens of each. “I’m occasionally reminded that I’m not a typical customer when the manager walks the envelope of prints out to me personally with a curious eye,” he says.
via Wired
