As is her wont, woman of many talents Natalie Sharp – aka The Lone Taxidermist – has put in her final stint with the brushes and greasepaint to celebrate Record Store Day.
A highly talented face-painter, Natalie, not only transformed herself into the sleeve of Joni Mitchell’s Blue but then filmed herself as the sleeve coming to life; the results of which you can see above.
Sharp, who has recently collaborated on projects with Serafina Steer and Gazelle Twin as well as completing her own Lone Taxidermist album Trifle, is putting down the brushes after this year, quoting a growing unease at the effect RSD appears to be having on small labels and shops.
Speaking about her third and final set she says: "I get asked ‘Why do you do it?’; ‘Do you make any money from it’ or ‘You could be making money off this, why dont you sell your face?’
"But that’s not really the point. In all honesty I’m not so sure why I do it – it’s just a compulsion I have. It’s an unrealistically ambitious challenge I like to give myself knowing that I’ll likely not finish or end up falling asleep with the make-up on after seven hours."
Can – Tago Mago
She adds: "I become mildly agoraphobic after seven days of not leaving the house, having conversations with Kimba (a bulldog-sized black cat) about the best way to go about tightening pores and getting rid of facial hair.
"I suppose it’s extreme fan art, it’s a way of cajoling the worlds of skin painting and music closer together. There’s something quite cathartic about staring at your face in a handheld mirror for seven hours, your face looses all its features, its just a mass of flesh for the layers of paint to adhere to.
"Then it’s recorded with a shutter release cable attached to a series of lights and cameras and the best part is destroying it in the shower. I always listen to the album I’m painting on repeat until its done. Full immersion."
Gazelle Twin – Unflesh
Aphex Twin – I Care Because You Do
Queen – Queen II
Joni Mitchell – Blue
