17-Yasmeen01
©1992 Craig Ashby
Collage
3.75″ x 3.75″

Number seventeen features the only image of model Yasmeen Ghauri. A lovely addition to the series and a great beginning to the end.

Once upon a time I actually got to meet and speak with Yasmeen while working on the upper east side of Manhattan. I actually got  up the nerve to tell her that I had done a painting and collage of her. Her response. “Why would you do that?” Chalk that one up as another ‘never meet your heroes’ moment.

In all fairness she was really kind about it all. But this was in an age before smartphones and the proliferation of the internet. I couldn’t show her anything. So it must have seemed a bit strange to hear this from a stranger.

More importantly, she is as pretty in person. Her skin color and texture are flawless. And when she left she found me to say goodbye.

This particular image is from a Valentino campaign and overall it’s one of the best in the series. I couldn’t get rid of the chair that was hanging by the crook of her elbow so I just left it in. The background is gorgeous. So 3D rendered in its gold and black texture. I want to say it’s from a cigarette advertisement but I can’t be certain.

The square halo is my favorite. The gold and silver combination working quite nicely. I wonder why I used clock faces so much in the series. Maybe due to the overuse of them in advertising. Maybe something else.