AN ARTIST'S STATEMENT
Over the last two decades, photographer Sebastian Piras has visited some of the world's most influential artists' studios, and shot their portraits in the most intimate of settings--the place where their masterpieces are born. "I never really have a plan, per se, when going to the artist's studio; I don't do anything gimmicky or conceptual when taking these portraits," Piras says. "I have always preferred to shoot as soon as I can after I get there: I like that energy that sparks from the first impact of meeting somebody, be it discomfort, nervousness, or ease--it's all great material."

These personal portraits are now bound together in A Pocketful of Contemporary Artists (Images Publishing Group), a 256-page collection of Piras's up-close-and-personal shots of creative minds like Roy Lichtenstein (above, left), Terence Koh, Jeff Koons, Andy Warhol, Julian Schnabel, Damien Hirst, Ed Ruscha (above, right), and more than 100 others. The book will be available in stores in June, but can be pre-ordered now at Amazon.com by clicking here.

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