Philip Glass, State II. Chuck Close 2006

I took this photograph last summer at the Chuck Close exhibit at Pace Wildenstein Gallery in New York City. I finally printed it tonight in the darkroom and I am blown away for a second time by this work of art. I shot this with my Olympus OM1 using Kodak Plus X 125 film. What are we looking at? This is a 6 foot wide by 8 foot tall woven jacquard tapestry. The realism of this piece is incredible. It was one of the most amazing contemporary exhibits I have ever seen.

Some details from the exhibit press release...


In addition to his large-scale painting, it is widely known that for several decades Close has employed a range of printmaking and photography methods in his continuous investigations of the human face. As early as 1991, Close also began working with another medium to create a woven portrait of one of his favorite subjects, the composer Philip Glass, in China.

In 2004, thirteen years later, the artist returned to the medium, this time working with a Jacquard loom in Belgium. These Jacquard tapestries, woven between 2004 and 2009, originate from recent daguerreotype or Polaroid portraits of Ellen Gallagher, Philip Glass, Lyle Ashton Harris, Brad Pitt, Andres Serrano, Cindy Sherman, Lorna Simpson as well as two self-portraits; one is a 15' horizontal work featuring five consecutive views of Close, offering a near panoramic, new viewpoint of the artist’s frequently rendered visage.


Pace Wildenstein

Jacquard Looms