The Art of Being a Muse
Ann Binlot, Document
October 2018
According to Merriam-Webster, the word muse is defined as, “a source of inspiration.” Pablo Picasso had several, including Françoise Gilot, Marie-Thérèse Walter, and Dora Maar, and more often or not, they were also his lovers. Auguste Rodin had Camille Claudel, an artist in her own right. Alfred Stieglitz would photograph the hands of his artist muse, Georgia O’Keeffe. Last night, the New York Academy of Art, the figurative art school co-founded by Andy Warhol, honored 11 muses—Louie Chaban, Racquel Chevremont, Helena Christensen, Alba Clemente, David Croland, Rose Dergan, Anh Duong, Debbie Harry, Jerry Hall, Zoya Loeb, and Brooke Shields—at its annual Take Home a Nude benefit. Together, the muses have appeared in the work of artists like Keith Haring, Richard Avedon, Damian Loeb, Andy Warhol, Francesco Clemente, Robert Mapplethorpe, Herb Ritts, Mickalene Thomas, and Will Cotton. Document interviewed several on the experience of being an artist’s muse. […]