[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
>
> she had to see it, even if she didn't mean it, and then chose to leave it.
Maybe she didn't see it. I looked at that cover hundreds of times and
didn't see it as a penis until it was first mentioned on this list over
a year ago. And then, oh, yeah, it's obvious all of a sudden (after I
managed to wipe the arm with bracelet idea out of my brain). If I recall
correctly, it was a big surprise to most of us.
One of my first paintings in my first art class was (surprisingly)
highly praised and my boyfriend liked it so much I gave it to him. He
took it home and he told me his mother had been aghast at the big penis
she saw right away in the center. That thing wasn't going over the
couch; it was instantly put under it. I was completely surprised at what
she saw and so was he. Neither of us had seen the image that way. It
was, instead, a painting of little objects such as rubber bands but made
huge. Once it was mentioned, though... yep, there it was, big and bold,
front and center. Well, how about that? Hmmm, the power of the subconcious...
So Joni may have known at the time, but maybe not. Since it's done so
naturally my guess is she didn't know. She does like men, after all, so
it's not surprising that phallic symbols would show up in what she
creates. If she'd deliberately said, ok, one penis needed right here,
one cock comin' right up (well, you see how quickly it can get very
crude), I can't imagine it would be as gracefully done as it turned out
to be (so gracefully done I didn't consciously see it for decades).
>like they say in ny....it is what it is.
Handy saying. Sometimes, though, it so much is what it is that it's
difficult or even impossible to see it another way. Joni knew that was
her arm, so even she may not have seen it any other way at the time. I'm
sure she knows NOW. Probably got a good laugh from it.
Debra Shea
