What are you?
Inwardly I am an erotic sadness, outwardly I am a homemade process for unraveling meanings.
Lucas Samaras, Another Autointerview, (1971)
I do these self-portraits to stay present. It is an act of self-love. Once in a while one is lucky to have another person do a portrait. So I have the camera, I know how to use it. I don't wait for someone to tell my story because I can. I also don't want to be misrepresented. It is more comfortable when one controls the narrative, as it is personal.
Consider it shyness, or whatever. I make the introduction, then you take it from there. I think an artist said we all paint self-portraits. My studio is full of them. It is easy to imagine oneself in a mirror staring back at you.
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