Simon Edmondson Posted August 18, 2012 Share Posted August 18, 2012 http://thechive.com/2012/08/09/self-portra...-day-45-photos/ A friend posted this on her FB page. As an example of graphic variation its very interesting. A note of caution though. The bloke took a different drug each day and completed a self portrait under the influence thereof. Personally I don't like taking anything, except caffeine in tea and coffee, your mileage may vary, as they say in adverts. simon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fuchur Posted August 18, 2012 Share Posted August 18, 2012 http://thechive.com/2012/08/09/self-portra...-day-45-photos/ A friend posted this on her FB page. As an example of graphic variation its very interesting. A note of caution though. The bloke took a different drug each day and completed a self portrait under the influence thereof. Personally I don't like taking anything, except caffeine in tea and coffee, your mileage may vary, as they say in adverts. simon I thought about it and i think I will not promote this at all... just too dangerous, especially since there are drugs mentioned there that really will destroy your life... It is interesting, because you can see which drugs seems to make you totally out of your mind and which will decrease you, but all in all this is very dangerous (for artist and the younger people watching it...) See you *Fuchur* Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Edmondson Posted August 18, 2012 Author Share Posted August 18, 2012 I thought about it and i think I will not promote this at all... just too dangerous, especially since there are drugs mentioned there that really will destroy your life... It is interesting, because you can see which drugs seems to make you totally out of your mind and which will decrease you, but all in all this is very dangerous (for artist and the younger people watching it...) Fuchur I agree with you about the drugs and was wary of posting it for that reason. My interest was in the variety of graphic styles he used/ I would have thought that, if he can do that under the influence, he should be able to do it outside that influence. Simon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin Rodney Posted August 18, 2012 Admin Share Posted August 18, 2012 I hesitate to post this because I don't know all the facts about this guy. Folks confined to mental institutions paint and draw under the influence. As a means of therapy and recovery they explore themselves all of the time. With the exception of the 'new drug every day' aspect mentioned here this would appear to be the case with this guy. I therefore find myself questioning the 'new drug every day' aspect and assume he is under a caregivers watchful eye with the self portraits created over a considerable span of time. A silly (and the perhaps the most dangerous) aspect to this: As drugs don't just magically wear off at midnight one would have to know what was still in his system from former days gone by. To know what influenced each days work we'd have to know what else influenced the guy. Was he leafing through an art book? Reading a newspaper? Watching TV? The uncontrolled mixing of drugs has a more popularly used name: suicide. If not under treatment this guy would appear to have seated himself in a room where the people that would admire his art from a safe vantage point afar off will prefer he continue his downward spiral. His current associates may not even care about his eminent demise. Perhaps its not too late to find a true friend who will toss him out a lifeline. With all of the inspirational influences we have available to us today I pity this guy if he still has to use drugs to exercise his artistic side. Edit: Disregard the above speculations. I saw this guys website and he seems to go out of his way to ratify the old 'all art is ugly' adage. I don't pity this guy. He's just a run of the mill idiot in love with himself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fae_alba Posted August 19, 2012 Share Posted August 19, 2012 It's a friggin' miracle that this nimrod survived all of that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gerry Posted August 21, 2012 Share Posted August 21, 2012 this strikes me as a variation on Morgan Spurlock's "Supersize Me" where he deliberately ate McDonald's every day just to see how much abuse his system could take. The whole idea of it grosses me out. I already KNOW is bad for me. I don't need someone deliberately abusing himself to make that point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NancyGormezano Posted August 21, 2012 Share Posted August 21, 2012 Blech. Not to defend his drug taking, especially this crazy kind, but it seems that he started the drug series in 2000, did 18 drugs in 11 days - and admits it messed up his brain. But 12 years later - he's still alive, and appears to me, he is over the majority of his drug taking craze, does not advocate it. He's currently around 42 years old. Selected quotes from his website (answers to questions to interviews by a variety of reporters): On March 30th 1995, I started doing at least one Self-Portrait everyday for the rest of my life. At present I have over 8,000 of them... On some days I experiment with drugs . However, the drug series itself began in 2000 when I moved into an 11 story building with the idea that I would make a documentary on all of the interesting characters there... (when asked in 2011 if the drug experiments are still ongoing:) Yep, the drawing still goes on. Never missing a day. Just finishing up my 89th book of self-portraits and quickly approaching 8,000 in all. Not all of them on drugs of course, but from time to time when the situation presents itself and an interested party donates a new one I'll do it. But only on my own terms, like I said everything has to be just right I only do it for the drawing.... Even I, who has conditioned myself to draw while in a drunken blackout and not remember it, still can't draw when completely obliterated or on a different planet, so I try not to overdo it. The act of drawing is much more useful than any drug. He also does a variety of mediums (stand-up, music, performance art, and more). And yes I conclude that he is full of himself, in true artistic, narcissitic style. But not a rabid advocate of everyone doing every drug ever invented. And given that he hints at having had a very painful early life (other quotes on his website alude to jail time, bad family), I'd say both the process of doing a self portrait every day, as well as doing drugs from time to time, is the way he runs from & deadens his persistent painful memories/feelings Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fuchur Posted August 21, 2012 Share Posted August 21, 2012 And given that he hints at having had a very painful early life (other quotes on his website alude to jail time, bad family), I'd say both the process of doing a self portrait every day, as well as doing drugs from time to time, is the way he runs from & deadens his persistent painful memories/feelings ...and running is a good way to handle them? See you *Fuchur* Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NancyGormezano Posted August 21, 2012 Share Posted August 21, 2012 ...and running is a good way to handle them? No. Of course not. Not justifying how he handles his problems. Unfortunately, fact of biology: that is how some/many humans handle painful experiences/feelings: self medication with recreational and prescription drugs, along with alcohol is a common inappropriate method for healthy healing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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