Untitled (Muse with Skeleton)
Artist
Wayne R. Lazorik
(American, b. 1939 - Jan. 20, 2023 in Sugar Grove, North Carolina)
Date1992
MediumGelatin silver print
DimensionsSupport: 13 7/8 × 10 3/4 in. (35.2 × 27.3 cm)
ClassificationsPhotograph
Credit LineGift of Jo Whaley and Greg Mac Gregor, 2025
Object number2025.15.3
DescriptionInterior of studio with female model standing at center with right arm at her side and left arm reaching out to rest hand on top of mirror. She is wearing a mask over her eyes and is partially covered with a sleeveless dress that has been drawn onto the negative and has tabs at the shoulders like the dress of a toy paper doll. Architectural column and chess set on table at left, bookshelf with globe and orb on top and stack of books on top shelf. At right is an oval mirror in stand that reflects a tabletop-sized articulated skeleton. Background has an apparent chalkboard with a wing drawn on it and “5’ 6””. Two globes or balls hang at top right.eMuseum Notes
In the 1980s and 1990s, photographer Wayne “Rod” Lazorik often posed his models (and sometimes himself) in inexplicable settings he constructed in the studio. A chessboard, a model of a human skeleton, and nude women are recurring elements in these images, which appear like realizations of the artist’s internal musings. This image is related to another that was likely made during the same session or with the same set-up, “The Tenth Muse.” While that photograph features a model in a lacy bustier and improvised wings, in this version the artist has drawn on the negative to clothe her in a fringed dress, bringing an entirely different mood. Lazorik generally constructed his scenes before he snapped the shutter on his camera, making this an unusual example of a post-production alteration.
On View
Not on view
1962
