A CLOSER LOOK AT THE MOVIE BROTHER JOSEPH

 In the movie Brother Joseph Again, artist Joseph Brickey makes a series of adjustments to a 3D model of Joseph Smith Jr.'s death mask when comparing it to the Larsen daguerreotype.

There is a glaring hole in his justification for what he calls a reasonable adjustment to the mouth. That very shape had long been recorded in both the Mansion House painting and the Unedited photo. The Unedited photo is a copy of the original daguerreotype on which the painting was based. In both images, the shape of the mouth matches what we see in Joseph's death mask.

Brickey claimed that an injury sustained before death caused Joseph's upper lip to swell, changing the shape we see in the death mask.

Willard Richards, who was in the room, reported that as Joseph tried to leap through the second-story window, two shots fired from the doorway struck him and a shot from outside entered his right chest. Joseph then fell out the window. Richards's other accounts describe additional wounds, including one below the heart. Richards also reported seeing no signs of life in the seconds after Joseph struck the ground. Most accounts agree that Joseph died very quickly.

Swelling requires circulation of a living body. It is fair to argue that postmortem bloating differs greatly from what Brickey is implying.

Brickey also added a nasolabial fold like the one visible in the Larsen daguerreotype, citing the weight and quality of the plaster to explain why the fold was missing from Joseph's mask. Yet the same plaster was used for his brother Hyrum, and those folds are clearly visible in Hyrum's mask. The plaster was capable of preserving those details.

There is nothing forensic about comparing an altered 3D image to a photo, when clearly a bias to make them match has been in play. That is an artistic interpretation, nothing less.

The Unedited photo aside, if the Larsen Daguerreotype doesn't match the artwork of Joseph or the death mask, or even the descriptions, what has the Movie Brother Joseph really proven?

#larsendaguerreotype #brotherjosephagain #josephsmithphoto #stickofjoseph #KSL The Joseph Smith Papers Joseph Smith, The Prophet Joseph Smith Jr and Emma Hale Smith Historical Society LDS Living The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

 

THE LARSEN DAGUERREOTYPE: YOU CAN MAKE ANYONE LIKE LIKE ANYONE

 

The following is pulled from my post on my Facebook page.

Update: Patrick Bishop asked me to clarify that Curtis Weber's research methods should not be attributed to the research behind Brother Joseph Again. Although Curtis appears in the documentary and is listed on its website, Patrick explained that being interviewed does not mean the filmmakers endorse his methods or agree with all of his conclusions. According to Patrick, he and Joseph Brickey agree with Curtis about the Smith-Larsen image but use different methodologies and disagree with him about the skull identification. Specifically, Patrick asked me to attribute the method discussed in my earlier post to Curtis rather than to Brother Joseph Again.

I acknowledge that distinction. However, after spending five hours watching and closely examining the documentary, I also observed what appeared to me to be the same morphing technique I criticized in Curtis's presentations. My concerns therefore extend to material shown in the film itself, separately from what Curtis has posted in chats or presented on podcasts.

After watching the movie, my opinion has not changed. I found nothing compelling or new beyond what I had already heard. I will write a lengthy blog post addressing specific findings and visual comparisons that I consider highly misleading, including examples of what I believe was a form of morphing used in the documentary.

Original post: The morphing phenomenon is real. It can easily bridge images together. This is why I always try to point out the need for caution, even when I've used it to illustrate something.

A furrowed brow and a few matching shadows in the Joseph Smith Mansion painting don't make someone the prophet. And I am referring to the Brother Joseph Again researchers who think it does.

I could have maybe spent more time looking for an even better match, someone with a more similar nose, but why bother? I've made my point. How many similar features can you find?

Joseph Smith, The Prophet Joseph Smith Jr and Emma Hale Smith Historical Society

Meridian Magazine LDS Living #brotherjosephagain #josephsmith The Joseph Smith Papers

#larsendaguerreotype