Witkin, "Man without head", 1993

This is adapted from my book “The Unseen Eye: Photographs from the Unconcious”. It is about power.

Joel Peter Witkin’s “Man without a Head, 1993” is the ultimate transgressive image. It violates rules. The man is not only naked but he also has no head. Posessing this photograph seemed unthinkable. Whatever the limits of taste may have seemed, this passed beyond. Posessing it was my statement of independence from all conventional considerations. Buying it, having it, collecting it was a ‘bad boy’ experience for me.

“Great photographs are like magnets or open windows that draw you in irresistably closer. The Witkin is elemental. It defies you to draw near. Stay back! The peice is a great litmus test.

“Photographs can make people uneasy. That is fine with me. Some people recoil as if the images have the power to do damage. They challenge us. When I first saw the Witkin I think I wooned and swooped. It was fantastic and unbeliveable. People demand to know how he did it. What’s confusing? He put adecapitated cadaver on a stool, left the socks on, and then made a photograph.”