THE BUCK

"Magnificent?
Yes.
Taking questions?
No."

— THE BUCK —

He already knows.

He doesn't need you to say it and he's not going to pretend otherwise. The antlers are real. The posture is natural. The look that says I've heard everything you're about to say and I've decided not to respond — also completely natural, been that way since birth.

Someone once tried to get his attention. He was aware of this. He looked slightly to the left and let the moment pass. It passed.

He's not arrogant. Arrogant implies he thought about it. He didn't think about it. He just is, quietly and completely, and that's somehow worse.

Questions go unanswered here. They always have. They always will.

— FROM THE ARTIST —

That side-eye is the whole painting. Everything else — the antlers, the burnt orange, the detail in the fur — is just context for that one look. I've met maybe three people in my life with that exact expression. They all turned out to be the most interesting people in the room. They also never told me anything about themselves.