The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of May 30, 2026

A vertically oriented black-and-white photograph depicts a person with a light skin tone from the shoulders up, facing forward against a neutral background. Their head and facial features are captured in a circular motion blur. Thin, horizontal white streaks of light mark the eyes, while the nose remains a central, distinct point. The mouth and chin form a soft, horizontal smudge. The figure's bare neck and shoulders are softly out of focus.

Self-Portrait: Pivotal Motion from Nose, Small

1983

Blythe Bohnen

(American, 1940-)
America
gelatin silver print
Image: 38 x 47.9 cm (14 15/16 x 18 7/8 in.); Paper: 40.4 x 50.3 cm (15 7/8 x 19 13/16 in.)
Gift of Herbert and Paula Molner 1992.217.a
Location: Not on view
  • Turner, Evan H. “The Year in Review for 1992.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 80, no. 2 (February 1993): 38–79. Mentioned: p. 68 www.jstor.org
    Cleveland Museum of Art, Tom E Hinson. Catalogue of Photography. Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1996. Reproduced: P. 99
  • CMA, October 27, 1992 - January 3, 1993: "Signs of Affection: Gifts Honoring the Museum's Seventy-Fifth Anniversary," CMA Bulletin, 80 (Feburary 1993), p. 68, no. 81.
  • {{cite web|title=Self-Portrait: Pivotal Motion from Nose, Small|url=false|author=Blythe Bohnen|year=1983|access-date=30 May 2026|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1992.217.a