SCALING UP DOWN OR OFF..A FEMALE'S DEFINITION. 1998 Drawing

By definition, a "scale" is an outer protective layer made up of flat, rigid, overlapping plates. By example, it is the skin of a fish. In the foreground we see Lady Fish complete. Hungrily gnawing/nibbling, and vibrating as she devours the quickly passing sustenance. Rigidly upright as she propels towards the surface after the merest morsel, she leaves a trail of luminous bubbles in her wake. The scar on her arm- fin is a defining tribute to past attacks that she has survived. Her "scales" are not to be confused with those of the ladder climber, whose devious ways often result in the "peeling away" with itching, stinging or burning as can be seen to her right...or with the weary Fisher-woman on the left, who "scales" the fish and removes the innards. What they all have in common are life's scars of punishment and pain. All the while, in the background, (lower left) the pianist uses her scales to embrace all the pains and gains into song.