The Art World and the World Wide Web

me understand what I really wanted in my life. It was so
gratifying—I mean, I literally spent from 8:00 in the morning
until midnight, five days a week, working for this guy.
So, you were an intern?
Yeah, I would set up his modeling sessions every morning—
he had one from 8:00 in the morning until noon. And then
afternoons were spent doing chores and errands and office
stuff—studio organization. And in the evening, from 8:00 til
midnight. He had two separate modeling sessions each day.
So, he basically was working on ten different works of art at
any one given time—all from life models. So what I would do
is make sure that all of his props, all of his models, all of his
tools, paints, canvases, et cetera were organized and set up.
Once that was done, I could then set up my own materials
and work. So while I was doing this I had the opportunity to
do my own work right next to this guy—this legend of an
artist—during the sessions.
Sounds like a phenomenal opportunity. How did this internship
come about?
I was a senior at Ohio Wesleyan and they have an intern
program—a lot of small midwestern colleges operate out of
an organization called the Great Lakes Colleges Association,
which sets up professional internships for juniors and seniors
in various cities around the country. It’s part of their “theory
to practice” philosophy.
Where did you live while you were interning?
I lived at the Windermere Hotel in the West End; Pearlstein’s
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