Irving Blum 1972

This is Andy Warhol’s polaroid of Irving Blum. It’s hard to put a date on it, but you can see it was made with that signature instant camera. The light is almost exclusively on Blum's face, leaving the rest of his figure in darkness. It’s like Warhol wanted to capture just the essence of his persona. Look closely, and you can see how the flash reflects off his skin, creating a kind of mask. I think Warhol was always trying to peel back the layers of identity, but also kind of reveling in the surface. You could say this connects with the photographic portraits of Chuck Close, who also seemed interested in the slippage between the photographic image and the painted surface. Both artists ask, what does it mean to truly capture a person? Is it even possible? I don't know, but I love that this little polaroid can still ask all these questions.