Portrait of the artist

I actually began this project.  But in an unusual way.  It was 1997 and before a single piece of art was completed, I approached galleries to gauge their interest.  I sent out short letters explaining the concept to several dozen NYC galleries and included a stamped post card addressed to an anonymous p.o. box that I'd gotten in the Village.  Out of, say, 50 queries, I got about a dozen responses; none of them were interested.  I did not pursue the project.

Here's what the letter said:

“Portrait of the artist” is a series of eight “portraits” of an anonymous artist. Each of the portraits will be a 6 foot by 5 foot painting depicting an unique “bio-identifier” of this artist.

These bio-identifiers are: thumbprint, DNA print, ophthalmic mapping of the iris, a magnified hair follicle, a voice print, dental x-rays, a footprint and teeth prints (bite marks).

The series examines the effect of technologies on the politics of identity and privacy. It creates an unique and identifiable portrt of a human being that exists outside of physical appearance, personality, soul and deed.

The series is currently in progress and should be completed by mid-summer.

Please take a moment to fill out the enclosed card and drop it in the mail. If you are interested in a preliminary viewing of the works in progress, I’ll call soon to set up an appointment. 

Herebelow are two photoshop pics to give an idea of how the fingerprint and opthalmic mapping paintings might look.