In 1998 a professor once told me, “nobody changes, people just show their inner truth like peeling an onion”, I realized he was right. Once I met an ex-boyfriend of mine, when I had been with him I had admired him and thought of him as a very interesting, original person, and I held him a torch for a long time. When I met him again he had changed into a completely different person, or rather: he had unpeeled.
Had I shown him when we were couple who he would become later he would have either despaired or not believed me, as he had turned into everything he despised when we were together. Had I met him as a junkie shooting up at the train station I could not have been more shocked. He had turned into a tiny, shriveled up bitter old man without any skin colour and had a deep frown chiseled into his face, who only talked in sentences he had picked up from (tacky) films and he was absolutely convinced the whole world was only interested in him, whilst he went on vacations with his family in the hotel jungle of the Costa Brava.
I had never met anyone like that before and have never met anyone like that since, normally I don’t spend time with people like that. He seemed completely unreal, like someone from a TV show set, or rather the villain from a Disney movie. Even when he walked down the street one could notice he imagines background music with each of his movements.
I hoped for some time he would snap out of it again, but by now I very much doubt that, and luckily I forgot wondering about him.
To clarify my deep shock I had painted these paintings from the memory of the meeting with him.

Josiane Keller “The Narcissist” tempera on paper, 8.5 inch x 11 inch (2004)

Josiane Keller “The Narcissist 2” tempera on paper, 8.5 inch x 11 inch (2004)