“Lavatory Self-Portraits In The Flemish Style”: Artist Recreates 15th Century Paintings In Airplane Toilets

Created by Nina Katchadourian “Lavatory Self-Portraits in the Flemish Style” is part of a bigger piece called “Seat Assignment” which is based on improvising with materials close at hand while in flight. This project started in 2010 and still ongoing.

“While in the lavatory on a domestic flight in January 2011, I spontaneously put a tissue paper toilet cover seat cover over my head and took a picture in the mirror using my cellphone. The image evoked 15th-century Flemish portraiture.

I decided to add more images made in this mode and planned to take advantage of a long-haul flight from San Francisco to Auckland, guessing that there were likely to be long periods of time when no one was using the lavatory on the 14-hour flight. I made several forays to the bathroom from my aisle seat, and by the time we landed I had a large group of new photographs entitled Lavatory Self-Portraits in the Flemish Style.

I was wearing a thin black scarf that I sometimes hung up on the wall behind me to create the deep black ground that is typical of these portraits. There is no special illumination in use other than the lavatory’s own lights and all the images are shot hand-held with the camera phone. At the Dunedin Public Art gallery, the photos were framed in faux-historical frames and hung on a deep red wall reminiscent of the painting galleries in museums like the Metropolitan Museum of Art,” said Nina.

More info: Nina Katchadourian (h/t: sadanduseless)