Faceless Beauty
  Wava Best
USA

 Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and not necessarily in the face of the person we see. The expressions of a face may detract from the beauty of a gesture and the elegance of a pose. Wava Best is hiding beauty in a variety of details: the gnarled trunk of a palm tree, the pudgy hands of an infant angel, the camel’s meditative snout speaking volumes of wisdom, or the wise men’s robes strewn with intertwined floral, foliate, and geometric figures. There seems to be one exception. The baby is but a formless bundle. The representation is reminiscent of early Christian iconography. Wrapped in swaddling clothes from head to toe, the Christchild’s true origin remained hidden. It remains hidden in this representation, too. It remains hidden to the eye but not to the hearts of angels, animals, parents, and wise men.