Lithograph of the special edition

[dick]

Not nearly enuough discussion yet on the litho ---

I love it! Who do you suppose was the lucky model?????

[friscogrl]

I like the drawing of the woman but not sure about that head at the bottom.

m

[cpl593h]

Not nearly enuough discussion yet on the litho ---

I love it! Who do you suppose was the lucky model?????

i haven't seen the litho. where is it please?

[jarkko]

Note: this photo has been updated with the newest version.

[drsing]

Who do you suppose was the lucky model?????

What do you mean? The naked woman or the head?

[bridger15]

...not sure about that head at the bottom.

My instant association was

I'll wear a mask for you.

---Arlene

[friscogrl]

I didn't think of that Arlene, but it does make sense!

M

[B4real]

Hi Dick,

As per your request, I finally found time to have a good look at this litho print. Firstly, the notational acknowledgement on the bottom as to where the idea for it came from “after an old photo” could mean that this is Suzanne Elrod the mother of his two children. She did have long dark hair. Probably depends on how ‘oooold’ the original photo actually is! I speculate and say that it could be someone else he knew rather well.

I find the deliberate positional placement of the rather mischievous looking ‘head’ with its proximity to and the pose of the female figure is definitely telling us a story. There is a feeling of quiet grace in the female figure with this pen, ink and wash drawing (as a litho) which is reinforced by the neutral tones and the lost and found edges of the lines.

Then that tranquillity changes somewhat with the mysterious head. Your eye will always travel first to where the darkest and lightest colours converge. Squint your eyes and discover what part of the image you see most clearly. That’s right it’s the head! It has a more solid grounded feel than the lightly drawn figure and is also centrally placed for direct attention. There is the dark of her hair but her head and face fade away when compared to the bottom head. We are initally directed to it for a reason known only to Leonard but it is fun to speculate on his purpose. Take away the darker head and it just becomes a simple uncomplicated drawing. If that head could actually talk we would all know the answer to the complete story of this image!

Bev

.....and Arlene that's a great thought....I reckon you would be good at the picture game.

[dick]

Thanks for the thoughts Arlene and Bev.

I get an erie feeling from the head, as if it perhaps is a death mask or skull. Could it be LC's juxtaposition of love/lust and death?

Love both "wear a mask" and "if this could only talk."

Glad I ordered it in any case.

[st theresa1]

The woman's pose reminds me of love and longing and the skull--well i remember the line
in Dear Heather where she bends over the bed to cover me up one last time saying
"look at me Leonard" Look at me one last time...in this litho the person represented by the
skull is certainly no longer looking at women, but yes--women will still be loving and longing.
Is Leonard meditating on death? What do you think?

[B4real]

I think you're close to the money Dick!
That's a great angle, st theresa1....and it made me think of this written by Leonard on one of his self-portraits...... especially the last line.

"Yes always somewhat off balance
but peaceful in his work
peaceful in his vertigo
An old man with his pen deeply familiar with his predicament”

.....seems I'm fated to match a Leonard line to an image!

He really wasn’t talking about this image but I couldn’t resist an interpretation of the above quote relating to the litho –

1st line: the head throws you somewhat off balance with how it affects the overall feel of the artwork
2nd line: the female figure has been drawn with a serene feeling
3rd line: he is calm with the unsteadiness of this juxtaposition
4th line: the old man fully recognizes his quandary and with his pen has drawn this image to show his dilemma.

With the passing of the years we come to realise that we cannot do and be as we once did and were. I feel there is a yearning illustrated here for that to be otherwise.

Well, another thought just came into my mind – She could be looking at the head and the head then is thinking that maybe his days are not quite so numbered after all! That’s the nature of good art – the more you look, the more you see. You know, a beautiful picture will get your attention but a picture with something to say will always maintain your interest.

.....and Dick,
Enjoy your limited edition print. It's probably a giclée one - produced (as we do) with pigmented inks and to museum standard. When people ask me for guidance after giving them facts and figures before purchasing an artwork I tell them that it doesn’t matter if you know a little or a lot about art; the piece will speak to you so buy with that in mind. I have seen far too many buyers purchase as an investment and have no emotional feeling at all about the art itself. I suppose that’s alright for some but I know I would like to enjoy what I have spent my dollars on. I know you feel the same.

Bev

[Joe Way]

I ordered it last night along with the vinyl.

Joe

[Mabeanie1]

To be honest, I'm not sure I particularly like the lithograph but I've ordered it anyway (along with a "spare" copy of the CD). I will have plenty of time to study it after it arrives (hopefully without a delay at UK customs .......)

Wendy

[holydove]

I just looked at this beautiful drawing again & this verse came to mind:

". . .most of you was naked/ ah, but some of you was light/ the sands of time were falling/ from your fingers & your thumb. . ."

Half of the woman's body is very white, compared with the other half, & it seems to kind of glow, like it's made of light; also, the outline fades & comes back & fades & comes back. Also, there is a yellowish color to part of her left hand - like the color of sand; & her four fingers are not distinguishable (looks like they are covered by the sand?), but her thumb is clearly visible. Perhaps the skull-like head represents the inevitable defeat/death which awaits us all, even the most beautiful woman, who is perhaps depicted here as, although still apparently young, already turning into light. (Among other possible interpretations of the "turning into light", there are systems of thought which describe death as a "merging with the light").

Congratulations on your purchase, Dick & Wendy! I'm sure you will love & cherish it forever.

[oblivion]

...when i saw the lithgraph it reminded me : "Salome demands the head of John the Baptist"
the woman is looking so innocent and at the same time tempting, so he is loosing his head.
salome has become a symbol for dangerous female seductiveness....
i also found the drawing below called "salome" and it seems to talk a similar language
...but i may be wrong
that´s pure fantasy
ute