One of the ironies of my life is my need to get very close to someone, and yet let very few people get close to me. It’s as if I crave and desire intimacy, yet, probably like many men, I am very fearful of it. I think this is a picture where I am playing with this idea. The polaroid of me within the larger picture is as close as most people are going to get to me. I’m letting you see me, but only on my terms. It’s me once removed, slightly more isolated. It must be obvious that I do not like to be photographed, am extremely self-conscious, and for these reasons, am more comfortable behind the camera rather than in front of it.

This picture was shot outside of Vienna, Austria. It is my son who is holding the picture of me. Really, neither of us are easily approachable, yet both of us are in plain sight to see. We’re here with you, and we’re not. This is the way I like it; almost like the old magician’s aphorism, now you see me, now you don’t.

PS: I’ve always liked pictures within pictures. I did this once when I was much younger with a landscape, and more recently in Paris on a fashion shoot.