Max Ernst , The Nymph Echo , 1936

Companion piece

Gustave Doré , The Family of Street Acrobats: the Injured Child , 1873

Joseph Henry Lynch , The Water Nymph , 1960s

Egon Schiele , Seated Girl Facing Front, 1911

Gustav-Adolf Mossa, Satiated Siren , 1905

Hans Bellmer , La Demi-Poupée , 1971

Ilya Repin , Follow me, Satan (Temptation of Jesus Christ) , 1902

Colima Culture, Dancer with Crocodile Helmet , Pre-Columbian Mexico

Diodorus says that Sardanapalus, son of Anakyndaraxes, exceeded all previous rulers in sloth and luxury. He spent his whole life in self-indulgence. He dressed in women's clothes and wore make-up. He had many concubines, female and male. He wrote his own epitaph, which stated that physical gratification is the only purpose of life. His lifestyle caused dissatisfaction within the Assyrian empire, allowing a conspiracy against him to develop led by "Arbaces". An alliance of Medes, Persians and Babylonians challenged the Assyrians. Sardanapalus stirred himself to action and routed the rebels several times in battle, but failed to crush them. Believing he had defeated the rebels, Sardanapalus returned to his decadent lifestyle, ordering sacrifices and celebrations. But the rebels were reinforced by new troops from Bactria. Sardanapalus's troops were surprised during their partying, and were routed. Sardanapalus returned to Nineveh to defend his capital, while his army was placed under the command of his brother-in-law, who was soon defeated and killed. Having sent his family to safety, Sardanapalus prepared to hold Nineveh. He managed to withstand a long siege, but eventually heavy rains caused the Tigris to overflow, leading to the collapse of one of the defensive walls. To avoid falling into the hands of his enemies, Sardanapalus had a huge funeral pyre created for himself on which were piled "all his gold, silver and royal apparel". He had his eunuchs and concubines boxed in inside the pyre, burning himself and them to death. ~ Wikipedia

Eugène Delacroix , Death of Sardanapalus , 1827

Hugues Merle, The Lunatic of Etretat, 1871

Twin Peaks Log Lady

American Sonnet 51 by Wanda Coleman

in my last incarnation i inoculated myself
with oodles of dago red and stumbled into fame
without falling. i worshipped in the temple of Lady Day
and took Coltrane as my wizard. i always wore my mink coat
to the Laundromat and drank pale champagne with my

soft-boiled eggs. i believed King Kong got a raw deal.
i believe great and prolonged sex cured cancer. i believed
in the afterdeath. i was liberator of cough-and-gaggers
from the cages of their spew. i scavenged rusted auto parts,
built a niggah machine, loaded it with atomic amour and

wiped out all purveyors of poverty. . . swapped my pink
pearl for a black sapphire. and then one quincentennial
i rose from the magnificent effluvium of my jazz
to discover my children did not know me

Harry Callahan, Eleanor, 1949

Franz Sedlacek, Flowers and Insects Nr. 1, 1935

Franz Sedlacek, Flowers and Insects Nr. 2, 1935

Franz Sedlacek, Flowers and Insects Nr. 3, 1935

Irving Penn , La main de Miles Davis, 1986

Leonor Fini, Dithyrambe , 1972

Chet Baker / Wolfgang Lackerschmid, Ballads for Two (full album)

Leonor Fini, Drawing for Marquis de Sade’s “Juliette.”, 1944

Chet Baker, Alone Together

Claude Cahun, Object, 1936

Vittorio Pavan, Leonor Fini , 1951