I was captivated immediately. However, I had no clue who Snider was paying homage to, and I had no way of finding out-- granted, I didn't try very hard. A couple of google searches and I gave up. I figured if I was meant to fall in love, the artist would present himself to me. And he did. 

At Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, summer of 2015,  I saw it. Love at first sight. 

Chuck Close.

The name rolled off my tongue, as if it belonged there. And the rest was history. 

The thing most captivating is the way Close goes about things. Even paralyzed he manages to create stunning, captivating work. 

This particular piece features his friend, Paul Cadmus, a social-realist artist and the largest fan men's butts that I've ever come across in a google search. 

An interesting thing is Close's choice to paint Cadmus in profile instead of straight-on.  Makes you wonder.