Portrait of the Artist as Another Artist

Portrait of the Artist as Another Artist

2013 - ongoing
Digital photographs, trust

In the summer of 2013 I was requested to house-sit at multiple locations at once, all of which were homes of artists. I dressed in their clothing and photographed myself as the artist inhabiting his or her work space. The home owners were not aware of my doing this, but have since been asked permission to use these photos as an artwork.

“Emily Promise Allison lists 'trust' as one of the ingredients in this mischievous photographic project. As the old saying goes, better to ask forgiveness than permission. After recovering from the news that Emily had dressed in my clothes to realize the photo (and yes, I asked if it included underwear), I began to consider that she and others of her generation are poised to become us just as we had become those artists before us. This leaves me with only warm thoughts.”

-Gord Ferguson, 2020