Jan. 10, 2002

I've really been exploring the idea of the self-portrait lately. It all started with an idea/sketch I had a while back that contained a self-portrait as an artist within an architectural framework. The pillars on one side were to represent Creativity or the Muse, while the other side would depict the depravities of human beings. This idea was overly ambitious as it would need to be 7 to 8 feet tall to do it justice, but it has started me down the road of self-portrait studies.

I finished a watercolor last weekend. The working title for it is Reflections as it is a self-portrait that recognized the use of a mirror as a prop. It is a cubistically inspired view of me behind my desk drawing. My watercolor box is beside me and in front of me is a tumbler of scotch on the rocks, Zig-Zag's and a feather. The feather is the only thing that is viewed in front of the mirror—it also appears as a reflection in the mirror and acts as the primary source for establishing the depth field. The face of the figure is comprised of one eye viewed through the lens of a pair of glasses and a nose. The drawing hand is the most prominent part of the picture.