CRISMAN, Jeff (American, 20th Century) Captain Don, Sword Swallower, and King Tut Close Up.  Unsigned. 2 Chromogenic Photographs on Kodak paper.  Circa 1994.  Images approx. 8 1/2 x 11 1/2". Sheet 11 x 14". Don Ed Hardy note about Jeff Crisman's photography follows. Most contemporary photos of tattoos feed the fad machine of the glossy periodicals - reducing the works to a component in the global electronic media glut, sound bites for the skin. This is ironic considering tattooing's permanence and necessary quality of commitment. In contrast to this disposable jump cut sensibility, Jeff Crisman's photos are complete psychological portraits. They place the person in context with his or her tattoos, usually in their native habitat. Moreover, the subjects are older, experienced, and have lived a life in their suit of skin pictures, in contrast to the usual young and trendy posers. It is this sense of the weight of experience and individual lifestyles shaped by being tattooed and doing tattoos that permeates Crisman's work with stillness, dignity, and strangeness. He is capturing the dream and reality of this odd art. They are among the best photographs of this very difficult and elusive subject that I have ever seen. Donald Edward Hardy / Honolulu, August 1994

Free sheet cornered. Paper lightly yellowed in margins. Overall good condition.