Refuge of the Road

Refuge of the Road

This is one of those pieces that came about as a total improvisation. Most of them are, to some extent conceived that way, but this one, from the pose to the final piece, was completely improvised. The model improvised some poses for me during the session, and I thought this one was unusual and strong at the same time. There is a confidence to the demeanor here, and yet he is hiding his face. The background environment eventually became the image "Distance and Longing" but I cam back to this early version when that one was done, and I still found it interesting. What did it mean?

To me, it was about the anonymity traveling affords you, the loss of your identity as you travel to new cities and places. You are no longer known, you no longer have a name or ties to a place. Certainly it can mean that or a host of other things, but I like the open-ended space this image offers. I like not being sure of it, or what it could mean.

I chose the title from the song by the same name by Joni Mitchell, who wrote it as part of a full album about hitting the road to escape for awhile.

Model: Ben