Emotions seem to be a simple concept at first glance, but when we try to look more closely at how they work, we soon realise the complexity and subtlety that this very sophisticated form of communication can take. To deal with this subject I decided to focus on facial expressions through the study of masks. Masks are a synthesis and a caricature of emotional archetypes. Moreover, the contexts in which they are used provide leads for research in understanding human reactions to this type of visual message.