These are examples of Fayuum Mummy portraits. They're paintings, from the Hellenistic era Egypt, that were attached to mummies and are meant to depict the deceased. However, from the above link:
On first inspection the Fayum mummy portrait paintings look like true-life depictions of actual individuals, but closer analysis reveals that the 'individual' features are sometimes no more than repetitive, formulaic renderings. In other words, quite a few of the portraits appear to have been created from a small number of facial templates, disguised by the use of different fashions, hairstyles and beards.
Regardless, they are still the only extent collection of portraits we have of more common people of antiquity, rather than the kings and generals we usually see in ancient art. That said, it was still only the very upper crust of society that could afford them.
Becca Saladin is an artist who uses photoshop to convert paintings and sculptures of people into more modern versions of them. Above is a video of many of her works.
She adds contemporary clothing, hairstyle and makeup to the people. Regular readers will know that I am interested by old paintings and pictures, and her modernization of old timey people is fascinating. It shows them in a whole different, and much more relatable, light.
Below are some of her pictures from around the web. You can see more at her website RoyaltyNow. You can buy prints of her work and also commission her to restore old family photographs. As she says at her site:
Working full-time as a corporate Graphic Designer on marketing collateral, my outside-of-work passions have always been art and history. Like most people, I’m so intrigued by history, yet always felt separated from the figures, likely because it’s difficult to relate to a stiff, formal portrait of a monarch. In early 2018, I created an Instagram account to share my hobby of transforming old portraits into lifelike modern-day images with fellow art and history enthusiasts. Since then, I’ve been able to expand Royalty Now to Tik Tok, YouTube & Etsy. It’s also expanded into different versions of my work - creating custom renaissance portraits for clients, retouching and colorizing old photographs, bringing an old family relative into the modern-day, and more.
