The five states of "Nat" represent both the color separations employed in this dye transfer printing and the artist's progressive use of color in creating the entire work - a process which parallels the additive nature of Close's own painting techniques. Close's use of photography has, throughout his career, been both a means to an end and an end in itself, making photography an intrinsic part of Close's painting. In producing his portraits he works exclusively from his own photographs. In Close Portraits Martin Friedman writes: "The photographic origin of each Close painting is never in doubt. In fact, his paintings are portraits of photographs of his subjects - never of the subjects themselves." (op. cit., p. 13).

A Chuck Close photograph of one of his subjects can lead to several different works executed in various media. There are two paintings of "Nat", one acrylic and one watercolor. In addition there are two works on paper, a pastel and a colored pencil. (See: Chuck Close, pp. 64, 86).

Close's "sitters" are all people he knows well and the familiarity is important to the casual feel of the images. In the case of "Nat", his father-in-law is the model.

A limited number of similar works in dye transfer have been executed, including the lot offered here. It is one of only seven unique five panel works of different images that Close has created. The overall scale of the work when installed suggests the scale of Close's large paintings.