| I am profoundly grateful to my mother and father, Mary and Brian, as well as my sister and brother, Andrea and Christopher. Without their love and encouragement, faith and unfaltering support, I would never have reached a point in my life and career where I could even have considered undertaking Couples. I regret that my father is not alive to see the final form of this work. I know he would have been proud. |
 | | I also wish to thank: |
| | My grandmother Marie Morrison and my aunt and uncle, Geraldine and Andrew Morrison, for all that they have done for me. They are the kind of grandmother, aunt, and uncle you read about in storybooks. |
| | Christina Reyna for her constant love and support over these last, and most difficult, years. |
| | Yasmin Nissen for the security of having her hand in mine and for putting up with me for more years than anyone could expect. |
| I would especially like to thank Linda Burchill, one of my best friends and earliest supporters. Linda worked on this project with me since its inception. Without her assistance at every stagefrom the first day of shooting through the proposal writing, the funding, the exhibition arrangements, and everything in betweenthis book would not have been possible. |
| I am deeply indebted to Quentin Crisp for his eloquent afterword for the book. |
| The staff at University Press of New England have my eternal gratitude for immediately recognizing the importance of the project, for their efforts to bring the book to the widest possible audience, and for their willingness to believe in me, by allowing me such broad, creative freedom. |
| I would also like to thank Kathy Gates for the original book design; Anthony Narcisso for his thorough transcription and editing, and his patience with me throughout the whole process; and Patrick Bernard for his assistance while shooting the project. |
| Thanks to Richard Williams and the generous contribution from The Polaroid Corporation, I have been able to continue my work. |
| For their friendship and help throughout the years, their generous contributions of time, knowledge and suggestions for the book, I am especially grateful to Bonnie Bee, Robert Castro, Maria Grazia Cavenaghi, Marco Consonni, Rafael Fagundo, Alessia Falletti, Rebecca Friendly, lan Gittler, Nina Graybill, Chen Ho, Marzana Kosicka, Kito Mbiango, Susan McCarthy, Jessica Mezyk, Heidi Niemala, Miranda Ostini, Andrea Pacella, Grant Perigo, John Rago, Kerry Reardon, Suza Scalora,J. C. Suarez, and Paulo and all of his family at Auriga. |
| I would like to thank all of the couples who contributed to the project by sharing such intimate parts of their lives. I would also like to thank those who participated but, because of editing or by their own choice, did not appear in the book. |
| For just plain blindfaith, I would like to thank Mahmoud Mustafa, M.D., and Fredrick Finelli, M.D. Their patronage early on helped me pay the rent and continue with the project. |
| Finally, for his friendship and because he was the inspiration for this book, Juan Carlos has my most sincere thanks. |
| This book is dedicated to the memory of my dad, Brian Gettings. |
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