Lucas Samaras Transformations

For a long time I have been an admirer of the Transformations series by Lucas Samaras.  The series was created from 1973-76 and contains 68 self-portraits that were taken with a Polaroid SX-70 camera and film.  Of what is exceptional about these self-portraits is that Samaras discovered that it was possible to manipulate the image whilst the emulsion was drying and it became possible to warp and Transform the body. 

The series seems to fall into two parts, or two distinctly aesthetic approaches.  The first aesthetic is normally a full-length portrait, sometimes involving a chair, in various poses and, I presume, with coloured lights, though the colour cast could be created through using different types of lighting, such as fluorescent or incandescent.  In these images the manipulation is present, but the distortion does not warp the form so much as to be unrecognisable.

However, the second part of the series takes the manipulation to an extreme level.  These are usually head and shoulder self-portraits, but at times they are completely unrecognisable.  Part of the face might be discernible, such as the mouth or an eye, but the rest of the face is just a warped fusion of skin tones mixed with hair colour, a contorted face that has gone beyond being recognisably human.  Indeed, the images are reminiscent of the style of Francis Bacon and show an extreme level of self-mutilation, a vandalization of form and tone going further than is humanly possible.

The image above sits in between these two camps.  The body of Samaras is recognisable, the form of two arms, a head and a torso are still recognisable, but Samaras has pulled his t-shirt above his head and revealing his bare torso.  On his torso there are, what can be loosely described as, shards of light or possibly clear spikes that look similar to Cactus spines, coming out.  These spines do not appear to be piercing the body as there is no blood and his stature does not appear to suggest that Samaras is impaled on spikes or is in pain. 

Now this is intriguing.  The title of the series of photographs is Transformations, which signify change, but changing into what?  Or is it a case that the title of the series just relates to the process of image manipulation that was used?  It could be suggested that the self-portrait is expressing an inner state, the subjectivity of an emotional experience, something on the inside piercing out and starting to be revealed. 

It is tempting to suggest that something transcendental is happening, something of a spiritual phenomenon.  This could be because the spines are light, suggesting purity rather than being dark, which would convey a sense of foreboding, a prognostication of evil.  But even if the spines are interpreted as signifying of positive spirituality, then the question “why are they spikes?” arises when something such as a glow would have been more peaceful and less violent.  It is this ambiguity that makes the photograph so engaging, that there is no clear answer.