"The Dance with the Matador" series began in Provence in the early 80's when I was first introduced to the corrida by Lucien Clergue in Arles. Fascinated by the graceful movements of animal and man, this dance has intrigued me since. I have no political statement to make, for it is the poetry, and others cultural rituals which I view.

From my earliest childhood days on a farm, I was surrounded by animals that we raised and ate. Often, a pet steer was lovingly cared for until one day, as was the life on a partially self sufficient farm with seven children, the animal was slain and fed the family through the winter. That was its purpose to being raised. That was understood from the beginning. As a child, I would also spend hours in the coal cellar dancing with a scarf tied to a metal pole as I dreamed of being the next Isadora Duncan. That I had no idea she existed or that one could even take dance lessons was irrelevant. I loved the movement and fantasy world into which I entered each time I swirled around that pole.

Many years later, in the middle of a slide lecture, I realized the bull fight images for me were about my childhood. Truly all photographs are self portraits.