Extreme Stylization + Ambiguous Posing
= No Expression
In Figure 2, I have re-imagined the eyes of Wenlock and Mandville to express "Sad" (left) and "Angry" (right). In spite of the fact there is only one eye to work with, the dramatic eye occlusion leaves the viewer in no doubt as to the intended emotional message, unlike the original poses which are far too ambiguous to make a strong impression of any sort.
We’re ready to project an emotion onto anything that seems face-like, but not so ready that we can do it with such slight cues.