One of the things

about ongoing projects that acquire some quantity is that you lose track of the starting points. I went looking in my series magritte directory to get the image that I've used in the post below, certain I'd used it as generation because it's one of my favorites. Discovered I hadn't so have rectified the omission, with heavy acknowledgment to the late, great J. G. Ballard, one of whose early short stories was about life lived in reverse.

Perspective: David's Madame Récamier

Assume a life-
line in reverse.

Death comes first.
Before that, head-

stone, interment,
mourning crowd,

laying out, the prep-
aration of the body.

Move forwards.
Miss Marx. Pass

through two
revolutions, a liberal

monarchy, literary
salons. Chateaubriand,

Mme de Staël amongst
the names. Napoleon.

Bring in Ingres, who
uses Magritte's posed

figure as basis for
La Grande Odalisque.

Which influences
David. Who does not

finish his painting
of Madame Récamier.

Was pissed when told
that someone else was

getting the commission.
But starts it anyway.