posted by mamatulip
click to embiggen
My mother coveted this picture of my grandmother's, although it never hung in their home. My grandmother kept it hidden in her sewing closet because in her day, such a picture was far too taboo to have on display. I like to think that my grandmother, a talented painter, admired this picture for its artistic qualities and indulged herself with it, satisfied with the knowledge that, though hidden away, it was hers.
It's a sign of the times, this picture - to my grandmother it was risque; by today's standards, it would surely be considered tame; feminine, even.
My mum knew it was tucked away in my grandmother's closet and she also knew that, one day, it would be hers. When I was in college I asked her if I could have it, to hang in my own apartment - it was, without a doubt, one of my favourite things in the house.
"Over your dead body," my mum replied. "I waited years for that picture, and you'll have to wait too."
Turns out I didn't have to wait all that long; my mother died two years later. I kept this picture hanging in her bathroom after my husband and I moved in to that house, my childhood home, and it's hung in the bathroom of each house I've lived in since.
I love this picture - the keyhole shape gives it a voyeur feel; adds excitement and mystery to an image that is so subtly sexy it's hard to take your eyes off of it. I love the way the woman is standing, so casual yet so feminine, exposed in all the right places, seemingly lost in thought.
And, like my mother before me, my daughter will have to wait until I'm gone before this vintage beauty hangs in her bathroom.
