Two photographs of William Burroughs by Andy Warhol

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Edna St. Vincent Millay at Mitchell Kennerley’s house in Mamaroneck, New York — Arnold Genthe

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William Gaddis and David Markson, New York, 1964

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(From The Letters of William Gaddis, Dalkey Archive).

Jumpin’ John Steinbeck

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(Via).

Portrait of André Breton — Man Ray

Theodor Adorno Shows Off His Sexy Legs

Italo Calvino and Jorge Luis Borges

Jacques Derrida and Jorge Luis Borges

Gertrude Stein Next to Her Portrait (Portrait by Picasso; Photo by Man Ray; Commentary by David Markson)

In The Last NovelDavid Markson offers the following citations re: Picasso, Stein, Man Ray (citations not in Markson’s (anti-)order):

Gertrude Stein once delighted Picasso by reporting that a collector had been dumbfounded, years afterward, to hear that Picasso had given her her portrait as a gift, rather than asking payment.

Not understanding that that early in Picasso’s career, the difference had been next to negligible.

Among the many paintings in her Paris flat, Gertrude Stein had two exceptional Picassos.

If there were a fire, and I could save only one picture, it would be those two. Unquote.

Picasso. Cézanne. Matisse. Braque. Bonnard. Renoir.

All of whom painted portraits of Ambroise Vollard.

Cartier-Bresson. Brassaï. Man Ray. Lee Miller. Robert Doisneau. Robert Capa. David Douglas Duncan. Cecil Beaton.

All of whom photographed Picasso.

Book Shelves #7, 2.12.2012

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Book shelves series #7, seventh Sunday of 2012: In which I photograph a coffee table.

We have three coffee tables. This is one of them (it’s next to the unit I photographed last week). Like many folks’ coffee tables, I suppose, it gets littered with books; the books on this one tend to rotate. Pictured above: lots of recent books acquired, including the Aira on top and Stuart Kendall’s new translation of Gilgamesh. There’s also the new issue of Lapham’s Quarterly and, for some reason (can’t remember) George Saunders’s Pastoralia. The Kindle is also there: my daughter and I read the first three comics in a colorized version of Jeff Smith’s epic graphic novel Bone—amazing stuff, and the color adds depth and beauty to an already beautiful book. I took this photo on a Friday afternoon, or maybe Friday evening (or night). I was drinking wine.

The big book is Walton Ford’s Pancha Tantra, which my lovely wife gave me for Christmas. Some images:

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Just a Picture of Aldous Huxley and D.H. Lawrence

Young Nietzsche (Detail)

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