Didier Anzieu, The Skin Ego: A Psychoanalytic Approach to the Self

"The primary function of the skin is as the sac which contains and retains inside it the goodness and fullness accumulating there through feeding, care, the bathing in words. Its second function is as the interface which marks the boundary with the outside and keeps that outside out; it is the barrier which protects against penetration by the aggression and greed emanating from others….Finally, the third function – which the skin shares with the mouth and which it performs at least as often – is as a site and a primary means of communicating with others, of establishing signifying relations…"

Hannah Wilke

"My mother understands why I’ve used myself nude in some of my artworks, possibly because she lived, when she was young, in an age where women were conditioned to be ashamed of themselves. As an adult, her introversion kept her safe. But I think she recognizes that the safety might have hurt her emotionally, even giving her illness and disease. And having been subjugated by that kind of pressure from society, I think she’s very proud of my thwarting that which has been taught by culture but which I think is inhumane."

Reborn in Blue