Alright, here is the truth.
I did this mixed technique series for a class. The idea was to take an object and draw a series from it, an idea that has stayed with me. It was in a classroom where there were lots of props and I chose to draw a huge dead leaf that had curled around itself and the teacher had displayed there
.
It started as a leaf but I started to see an oyster so I eventually called the series "huitres". At the end of the exercise we were asked to show our work to the class. I got a few comments that I was being deliberately provocative and sexual..... comments to that effect.
I was actually caught off guard by these observations but thought "well, if that's what you see.....why not?"
Many of the series that I did afterwards including Fente, Y'grec, Noyau, Bourgeon, Cicatrice, and Fleurs started from this idea and formed a body of work called "intimacy". The first exhibition I did in La Maison des Artistes in Cagnes-sur-Mer was called "Intimate Ties" or intimate links...."Liens Intimes". I was invited by Laurence Calamand to participate and that expo launched my new "career" here in France.
And here is a linocut I did later of the same subject.
