Self Portrait 2003

Like a lot of painters, I often feel the need to make self-portraits. Sometimes I'm bored and don't know what to paint, other times I know I'm in a state that needs to be recorded. At the time I made this I was very anxious. I was living in the east village and all sorts of things were going on in my mind, good and bad. I think this was one of the best-self portraits I ever made, also one I should have left alone. I (as I often do with self-portraits) manipulated it into an overworked grueling piece of crap. This is a blurry detail that a friend shot at its beginning. Thanks Annie! I've had the urge to compile all my self-portraits here, I will do it as soon as I find them. I am fascinated by self-portraits, and I love artists like Frida Kahlo who have the cajones to make them the bulk of their work. Speaking of Frida, her work is coming to the Philadelphia Museum of Art this February and I couldn't be more excited..