h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I like the mask. It completely subverts the original painter's intention. It used to be convention when painting nudes to have the eyes looking demurely away from the eye of the viewer. In Manet's Olympia, she looks directly at the viewer thereby breaking down the voyeuristic viewpoint of the conventional viewer. The mask adds a new level to it. Now the figure becomes a more powerful subject. Also, I've never seen Olympia reproduced online. The medium of the digital image further breaks down the contours and depth of field that Manet had purposely lessened in the original. Anyway, good choice Maggy.

Thanks, darlin'. The mask is the main reason I chose that particular head shot. I can see you, but you can't see me. And I felt that the mask would distract some from the fact that the pic is a nude, because while the body is exposed, the attention is drawn to the face, and the mask lends a certain mystique to the subject which would otherwise be lacking.