Study of a Head (after Yoshitoshi), 2007

Study of a Woman (after Yoshitoshi), 2007

Study of a Woman (after Yoshitoshi), 2007

Study of a Woman (after Yoshitoshi), 2007

Study of a Head (after Yoshitoshi), 2007

Apollo, 1984

These are, again, scanned SX-70 photographs; in fact, any pictures that show up here with a date in the 80s were taken with a Polaroid camera. The biggest problem with all of these SX-70 pictures was that the photos had polyester film as a protective surface & were very prone to scratches, often emerging fresh from the camera with a few scrapes on the surface. I recently showed these to a friend who was quite surprised at the high quality of the color; most instant pictures tend to rapidly yellow & fade but fortunately these were all put into boxes & kept out of the light for the past twenty five years so have retained that painterly, somewhat excentric & unpredictable color we all loved.

Naiads, 1983

Sumo Study, 1983

Baseball Study, 1983

Baseball Study, 1983

Baseball Study (Diptych), 1983

Seven Sumo Studies (Portraits), 1983

These were all taken in 1983 directly from a rather small Panasonic television screen with an SX-70 camera: I had torn the ligaments in my right ankle & couldn't get around so it began as something to simply alleviate the boredom of the invalid. To eliminate room reflections I would drape a piece of black fabric over the TV & myself creating an effect much like a photographer using an old 8 by 10 view camera which at the time I found extremely amusing. The colors are all the result of manually fiddling with the color, tint, brightness & contrast dials on my ancient television set since this was before the advent of photoshop or for that matter the personal computer. I often suspect that the brilliant colors were also, in part, due to the fact that the tube was about to die on me. I've never been able to get quite the same effects on any other set I've owned.

Garden Study, 2009

La Pelouse Sauvages, 2009

(I used a translation program for the title & have a funny feeling it's wrong…)

Garden study, 2009

Modernity: From One Place to Another Place (after F. W. Murnau), 2009

Botanical Study, 2009

Muguet des Bois, 2009

Botanical Study, 2009

Botanical Study, 2009

Untitled, 2009

Garden Study, 2009

Wet Peony, 2009

Self-Portrait with Peony & Imperial Yellow Shirt, 2009

Orange Pansy, 2009

Götterdämmerung, 2009

Of course this is silly ~ that's the point.

Nature Morte, 2009

Narcissus, 2009

Diana's Crown, 2009

It's like a nicotine habit you're always thinkin' about quittin'…

New Dogwood Blossoms, 2009

OK, so I didn't even make one month. 

It was all caused by stress ~ I've gotten over it, moved past it, or at least that's what I've been telling myself. Most likely it's just indicative of my weak will. (Of course it could also have something to do with my current exploration of the vaguely exotic world of the aperitif: who knew there were so many variations of vermouth or that they made such complex tasting cocktails…) 

Ultimately, Facebook is just not the same as blogging. As another blogger pointed out, when one tends to think in italics, FB just doesn't cut it.

Does this mean I've become a blog junkie?

In the end, however, this photo was just too good not to share.