This painting is a self-portrait (I'm not the skeleton) and holds much relevance for me. From the age of 27 to 50 I travelled constantly for work. I would find myself often dining alone in cities like Paris, Milan, Rome. The company had a generous expense budget, and I stayed in 5-star hotels and dined in the finest restaurants. I thought that I had made it... Looking back, I spent so much time alone. Of course, compared to many I was very fortunate and I knew this, however, life would have been very different if we didn't have to chase the dollar. Time was slipping away, hence the title 'Dining with Death'.