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Symmetrical Faces Don't Actually Make For Good Looks

by Tanya Thomas on Mar 23 2011 9:27 AM

 Symmetrical Faces Don
The myth that people with symmetrical faces are better looking has been set straight by a photographer, who studied the faces of 11 subjects.
Julian Wolkenstein, 38, from Exeter, Australia, took portraits of 11 people and made a symmetrical image using the right side of their faces, and another using the left - to show the hidden differences.

Interested by people's faces as art for some time, Wolkenstein's photographic and Internet symmetry project is part of his research into how people view one another.

"Faces are such a point of contact for us, they are the first thing we see in the mirror and they are the first thing that we see when we meet another person," the Daily Mail quoted the artist as explaining.

"They have been studied by artists, painters and scientists for thousands of years and are such a unique feature.

"Part of my project has been to de-bunk the myth that symmetrical people are therefore better looking. Some of the symmetrical images don't look attractive at all," he said.

The resulting images might also show differences in the minds of the individuals.

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"It is interesting to see which side is more taunt and more used, because that indicates which side of your brain might be more dominant," he said.

"It is also of course interesting to see that some people look nothing like themselves when the two left sides are joined into one, or the right sides, or both.

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"There is something about the joined left and right images that our own brains tells us is the same person, but at the same time it can make you feel uneasy. You realise something is not quite right," he stated.

Now he is offering everyone the chance to divide their face to reveal their true symmetry with a new iPad and computer app.

"My website offers people the chance to do what I have done with my left and right split portraits," he explained.

"You can take pictures with your downloaded iPhone app or use a webcam in a few easy steps to symmetrical split your face," he added.

Source-ANI


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