When I was modeling in Santa Fe, I had the great joy of working with Lyndall Bass. I was recently in contact with her and discovered that she won the design contest for the new penny! That is right. Look in your wallets and pockets and her design is there. The prize is a two-sided joy. On one hand, she worried, she might forever be known as the penny lady. On the other hand, it provided her with the ease to work on her own pictures.
Lyndall is mostly known for her flowers and still-life pieces, but when I was working with her she was working on a series of mythic women. We used to call me the moon-faced girl because any photographs she took to use when I was not sitting made me look so flat, like some chubby lady squashed in the moon. She would take them nonetheless. Sometimes there was something she could work from. Sometimes, I returned later that week or the following week to find out she hadn't been able to do anything and we could not converse because she had to keep working on my chin.
I really enjoyed working with Lyndall because though we were sometimes silent, we also talked about our families, mythology, the steps to figuring out life. One of the joys in working with someone over several sittings is the relationship that develops. I am glad that Lyndall won the penny contest, but mostly because now she can do her own work without worrying about scrounging for pennies.
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