Veil and Vertebrae

She had been sitting between setups, the lace robe half on and half off, and I asked her not to move. The pose was accidental and therefore better than anything I could have directed. The forward fall of the hair hides the face entirely, which removes portraiture from the equation and leaves only form.

I lit from camera left with a single large softbox positioned low and feathered upward. The lace functions as a textural counterpoint to the smoothness of the skin. Where the body is continuous and unbroken, the fabric is perforated, delicate, on the edge of dissolution.

This is one of the quieter images in the Figure Study, a palette cleanser between the more assertive compositions. It asks nothing of the viewer except attention to form.