MIKHAIL BARYSHNIKOV ON RICHARD AVEDON'S PORTRAIT OF IGOR STRAVINSKY

Baryshnikov remarks on Richard Avedon's portrait of Igor Stravinsky. This portrait is a single image that could compete with any in-depth biography. Stravinsky isn't at ease with Avedon's lens. His white shirt blends with the background, so what stands out is a face full of life marks. But what arrests Avedon is the stare: the stare of an artist with a huge internal life. The conflict obviously bothers Stravinsky greatly and whether he knows it or not, it's crystallized by Avedon at the instant of this portrait.