HOLLY WOODLAWN by SADIE LEE.

“Holly came from Miami F.L.A.
hitch-hiked her way across the USA
Plucked her eyebrows on the way,
shaved her legs, and then he was a she
She says, hey babe
take a walk on the wild side.”

-- Walk on the Wild Side, Lou Reed (1972)

posing II
oil on canvas

posing I
oil on canvas

posing III
oil on canvas

Three works from a series of ten.
Holly Woodlawn is one of the last surviving members of Andy Warhol’s ‘Factory’ inner circle, the star of cult films Trash and Women in Revolt. Born Harold Ajzenberg in Puerto Rico, 1946, she took the name ‘Holly’ from the gamine heroine of Truman Capote’s Breakfast at Tiffany’s.
In October 2006, artist Sadie Lee spent every day for a week in Holly’s Los Angeles apartment, making studies of Holly as the basis for a series of oil paintings. The paintings, made on Lee’s return to her London studio, show Holly in all her incarnations, with and without make-up, wig and frock. This is the first time that Holly has allowed herself to be presented publicly out of drag. These are not just pictures of a man dressing as a woman; Holly is both male and female and neither.
Sadie Lee lives and works in London, and is best known for her controversial series of portraits of former Burlesque stars, now elderly and retired, painted in costumes from their glory days. She has been selected for The Hunting Prize twice and for the BP Portrait Award a total of 5 times, resulting in a commendation in 1998 and the BP Travel Award in 1996.

(Hey sugar,) take a walk on the wild side...


From: d1sintegration