In Western society, many have lost touch with the spiritual aspect of death and dying. We do not like the idea of death. It conjures up deep fear of the unknown, and it reminds us that we are ultimately at the mercy of life. We put off thinking about it until it comes knocking at our door, calling for us or calling for a loved one.
We need to remember that death and life are partners, each providing a context for the other. To understand death, a person must try to understand the purpose of life and the relationship between life and death. Life is a sacred journey which includes death. The Christian mysticSimone Weil wrote, “[Death] is the instant when, for an infinitesimal fraction of time, pure truth, naked, certain, and eternal enters the soul.” In other words, the moment of death is a “thin” moment in time. It is a moment when one is between this life and the next, a moment when one moves more fully into the Mystery, naked of all pretense.
“The process of dying involves both the body and soul in the greatest transition we are ever called to make.”~ Megory Anderson ~ excerpt from Sacred Dying: Creating Rituals for Embracing the End of Life
German photographer, Walter Schels,and journalist, Beate LaKotta collaborated on a project entitled “Life Before Death.” Together the duo asked people who were very close to death if they could go with them during their last weeks and days. The result is a series of insightful descriptions and photographic portraits that show the hopes and fears of the dying.
Laura Cumming reviewing the images for The Guardian/The Observer wrote the following: “Anyone who has ever been afraid of dying should see this show. It is momentous, inspiring, cathartic. It calls upon your full humanity.” Please visit Life Before Death to see the images and to view the video that explains the intentions of the project.
During the 19th century, a tradition of rendering post-mortem images was revived through the medium of photography (Figure 1).
Fig. 1 Le Blondel, Post Mortem Picture (1850)
The recording of memorial likenesses had traditionally fallen to the field of painting where large numbers appeared in both the United States and Europe. The death-bed portrait, whether a painting or a photograph, was the last chance a family had of keeping the memory of a loved one alive. While this was certainly a common motive for capturing these moments, some of the photographs differ from their painted counterparts in how death was portrayed. For example, when one examines post-mortem paintings, one usually observes a child depicted as alive. Often times, the only clue death has occurred is the presence of symbols whose meanings vary according to the society represented. In Figure 2 and 3 painted by William Sidney Mount’s son, Shepard Alonzo Mount, in 1868 we see two such examples. Both Camille and Nicholas are plump, happy, and alive. Each painting incorporates symbols that tell the viewer the painting is in fact a memorial portrait and not one depicting life. In Figure 2 a pocket watch rests on the ground probably indicating the time of death of young Camille. In Figure 3, we see the inclusion of a painted backdrop depicting weeping willows and a ship floating on calm water. The foreground depicts the child plucking flowers from the potted plant. A rose held downward or the presence of morning glories both indicate a life cut short. A boat floating on calm water symbolizes an easy death, whereas stormy water symbolizes the opposite. The weeping willow is an obvious indicator of the sadness that has transpired
Fig. 2 Shepard Alonzo Mount, Portrait of Camille (1868)Fig. 3 Shepard Alonzo Mount, Memorial to Nicholas M. S. Catlin (1852)
Early post-mortem photographs share the impulse to show life instead of death by depicting the deceased in a variety of poses. Oftentimes, the body is depicted outside of the coffin (Figures 4, 5, 6 and 7).
Fig. 4 Secure the Shadow Ere the Substance Fade: Premortem photograph of a child Date c.1845
Sometimes, parents of the deceased hold their children in their laps and arms, (Figure 5). Other times bodies are propped in chairs as if they are carrying on a conversation or reading from a book or newspaper (Figure 6). For example in Figure 7 we see a post-mortem photograph of a young woman sitting up with her eyes open, holding a book. For the most part, even though there is the allusion to life through the posing of the individual, the bodies are noticeably dead.
Fig. 5 Mother Holding Dead Child: Child in Coffin Date c.1845-55Fig. 6Fig. 7Fig. 8 Dead Child, 1860
In later post-mortem images, subjects are depicted in a more formulaic manner. The subject is represented in either a close-up or full-length body shot. Sometimes the camera is positioned directly over the body looking down onto it, as is the case in Figure 8 and in Figure 9
Fig. 9 Southworth and Hawes, Unidentified child, Deceased
but more times than not, the camera is positioned at the same level as the body, emphasizing the face and its importance as a soon-to-be-cherished memory (Figure 9).
Fig. 10
Symbols like the ones represented in Figure 2 and Figure 3 are noticeably absent, with the exception of flowers that are common fixtures in many of these images. There is much more focus on portraying the dead as resting peacefully. Color is even added to the image to disguise the evidence of death. There were obviously exceptions to this from time to time. For example, photographers oftentimes found themselves arriving to make the death-bed portrait after the body had been prepared, which, as you can imagine, made for stiff, un-lifelike photographs (Figures 7 and 11).
Fig. 11
Bodies that could not be photographed in time were occasionally exhumed for the very purpose of facing the camera. That is what is so disturbing about Figure 12.
Picturing Life 