Fischl displays himself comically strutting, his stomach strangely stuck out, as if to say that his own portraits are just as bizarre; that he nor his paintings are to be taken seriously. The artist presents himself as a clown, preparing for those who say something against his art, preparing himself from the negative. His mask hides him from any critiques. "I think that we, and again I'm saying the generation as we, had a profound degree of self-consciousness. The self-consciousness came from a feeling that everything was a cliche, that everything had such a strong predecessor to it -- that basically you were in pantomime" (Tillim). In Chicago, when he was going to school, Fischl was also exposed to the non-mainstream art of the Hairy Who. "The underbelly, carnie world of Ed Paschke and the hilarious sexual vulgarity of Jim Nutt were revelatory experiences for me" (Eric Fischl Web site). The 1970s and 1980s were a time of change. It was possible to legitimately make a piece of art that had an initial impact, as opposed to a self-conscious one. At the school, some artists were making...

Experimentation was at its height: Cindy Sherman was imitating film stills, and Robert Longo was copying advertising. "You had many artists working in a self-conscious way…. The success was being in the right moment at the right time and filling up what was clearly a profound need in the art community -- for museums, galleries, and collectors -- for something that felt new and vital and exciting" (Tillim).
References Cited:

Db-ArtMag.com Rooms for the Misbegotten: A Conversation between Erick Fischl and Cheryl Kaplan.5 December 2009 http://www.db-artmag.de/2006/4/e/1/444.php

Fischl, Eric. Web site. 5 December, 2009 http://www.ericfischl.com/bio/biography1.html

Homes, A.M. Eric Fischl. Bomb (1994-95). No. L., pp. 24-29

Tillim, Sidney. Eric Fischl at Mary Boone, Art in America. (1987), pp. 214-215.

Tuten, Frederick. Fischl's Italian Hours, Art in America, (1996) 83, pp. 76-83, 132.