25 July 1996

The Ugly Side of Pretty

Flowers are like dogs: they're fine as long as you keep them outside where they belong. Plants and puppies are a nuisance under a roof: they leak and shed everywhere. Everyone likes a pretty row of plants on a windowsill, but a glance at the dead leaves, dirt and dried blossoms on the floor beneath reveals their foul nature.

It reminds me of photographing newborn harp seals on the ice floes off Newfoundland. The white furry seals are undeniably cute, but what's never shown in the photographs is that they leave a trail of feces behind them when they wiggle across the ice.

Pretty always has an ugly side.