Nan and Brian in Bed

"Nan and Brian in Bed," Nan Goldin (American, born 1953), NYC, 1983, Silver dye bleach print.

The photo depicts a relatively young, shirtless male smoking a cigarette in the foreground. The man's expression is hidden by the shadows and his cigarette, although he appears to be staring distractedly out the bedroom window. A warm orange glow permeates the room, the light casting a shadow that divides the image and its subjects. While the man's rustled hair and bare chest imply he has only recently left the bed, there are no indications of time of day or whether the light is natural or artificial. The warm lighting in the foreground is contrasted by the clothed female figure lying on the bed.  Dressed in all black, the woman appears deep in thought, a stark contrast to the appathetic expression worn by the man we can presume to be her partner. The woman appears to be distraught, almost clutching her pillow as she gazes longingly at the man in the foreground. Her eyes betray a sense of desperation, dependency, and weariness, emotions that are lost on the man's averted gaze.

The walls in the background are painted lighly, seemingly off-white colored by the glow of the morning sun, and mostly blank except for three visible photos or posters. The two pieces hung on the left-most wall are indiscernable, however, the photo on the front wall (of a young, shirtless male smoking a cigarette) bares a striking resemblance to the man in the foreground. The relatively blank walls convey a sense of emptiness that may reflect some of the tension the woman's concerned look suggests exists between the two subjects. Additionally, the rigid, vertical, metal bars of the bedframe serve to further express the perceived lack of comfort and security in the room. Moreover, the blank walls and bed frame  suggest that the couple is not of particularly high socio-economic status. The tension represented in the photo - between light and dark, naked and clothed, and overt and covert displays of emotion - may reflect the inevitable power fluctuations and feelings of vulnerabiltity associated with intimacy.

As was characteristic of many of her photos, "Nan and Brian in Bed" serves as a sensationalized snapshot of the human experience. In combining the warm lighting, the exaggerated, painful expression on the woman's face, and the convenient framing and location of the camera, the photograph comes to resembles a scene from a movie. In portraying such personal, intimate moments in a fashioned, cinematic manner, Goldin may have been making a statement about the universality of such emotions and experiences, which in her case, were ones that were often repressed or considered taboo.

The truth behind the photo is that, the relationship it depicted, between artist Nan Goldin and her partner Brian, ended violently three monthes later. The piece was part of the now famous 800 image, multimedia installation entitled The Ballad of Sexual Dependency which debuted in the mid 1980s. In the 1970s and 1980s, Goldin used her art to blur the distinction between public and private moments by documenting women looking in mirrors, girls in bathrooms and bedrooms, drag queens, and the general culture of obsession and dependency that plagues some modern relationships. As a result of its raw, uncensored nature, her work has been said by some to have a type of pornograpghic appeal. Much of Goldin's work can be seen to incorporate themes such as domestic abuse, drug abuse, and other unhealthy aspects of relationships that, all too often, remain undiscussed. The photo below makes painfully clear the consequences of domestic abuse - a photo of a battered Goldin taken after the violent break-up.

Nan after being battered, 1984

In this video, Leslie Morgan speaks about domestic abuse and the complex, twisted relationship shared by the abusers and their victims.

But most of all, let's give it up for being single.