Bodypix … Photography by Tom Clark

Posted on January 25, 2012 by martin

There are photographers that have a gift for putting us in touch with the sensuality inherent in men and the beauty of the male form. They understand raw masculine emotion stripped of autocratic indoctrinations and frivolous material pursuits. They breathe with such creativity, they see things the rest of us can’t, then they capture it on film. Artists such as Robert Siegelman, Terry Cyr, Alejandro Caspe, and of course Jim Ferringer comes to mind. Tom Clark ranks among them.

Tom has led an eclectic, interesting life. He grew up in Rome, where art and an appreciation for the human form are part of everyday life. As a kid, traveling throughout Europe with his family, he had the habit of capturing images with his Kodak. Later, while giving piano lessons and studying music, he realized his love for photography was more than a hobby. There was only one thing to do: pack up, move to southern California, invest in some first class photographic equipment and get started. The rest is history. Tom is currently adventuring in Utah.

Click here to visit Tom’s website, to see more or buy a print.

Model Kevin Lawrence from the Mulholland Series

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Jenny Saville’s Dramatic Art

Posted on January 24, 2012 by martin

Fulcrum, 1999

Creativity often lurks in the shadowy recesses of the human mind, manifesting in lyrics and musical notes, or images captured by a camera, or brush strokes on a canvas, or replications of life in the performing arts. Jenny Saville uses the canvas. Her creativity has combined with ghosts from her youth and a fascination with the physical drama of the human condition.

Jenny Saville was born in Cambridge, England in 1970. In 1990, midway through her BA course at the Glasgow School of Art, Jenny Saville exhibited in Contemporary ‘90 at the Royal College of Art. In 1992 she completed her degree as well as showing in Edinburgh and in Critics Choice at the Cooling Gallery, London. Following the success of her show at the Saatchi Gallery in 1994, which generated a great deal of publicity for her work (the images were ubiquitous that year), Saville went on to take part in the exhibition American Passion, which toured from the McLellan Gallery, Glasgow, to the Royal College of Art and the Yale Center for British Art in New Haven, Connecticut.

Saville’s fascination with fat appears to have formed during her youth while sitting on the floor watching her piano teacher. Her view from there was big, thick thighs, a thick tweed skirt and tights. The image stuck in her mind as she stared at the way the teacher’s thighs never parted and how the flesh would rub against the tights, which is a similar experience some have by looking at one of the big early Savilles. Saville wanted to capture a mix of awe and intimacy. “I wanted both in those pictures. A large female body has a power, it occupies a physical space, yet there’s an anxiety about it. It has to be hidden.” She believed part of her endeavor was a search for intimacy, “as if being in a mother’s arms”, whereas part of it was discomfort, “the anxiety that comes from living with flesh”.

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Bisexuality … One Woman’s Challenge

Posted on January 23, 2012 by martin

I often hear from women that are grappling with their husband’s or boyfriend’s bisexuality. Often their story touches my soul. Pam’s challenge for example. She has been going with her boyfriend for five years, basically a marriage when it comes to affairs of the heart. Three years in, she learned her boyfriend has had a quickie with another woman, which led to his confession about his bisexuality and his countless encounters with men.

Here are Pam’s own words:

“I stumbled on your website and signed up immediately after reading your pages on bisexuality. My boyfriend is bisexual and it took nearly 3 years before he told me about it. We have been together for five years.

His experiences in our relationship were frequent anonymous encounters with men and occasionally a female, but his attraction is mainly to men. When he told me about it, it came about after I discovered he has slept with another woman. Telling me that it was rare for him to be with another woman, left me extremely hurt because I didn’t believe him. But, when he told me about being with other men and that he had been with hundreds, I realized we had a more than his bisexuality to discuss. Continue reading →

Hung Naturally

Posted on January 22, 2012 by martin

How do politicians like this get elected?

DENVER — Circumcisions would again receive state funding under a proposal introduced by several Colorado lawmakers.

The bill would allow Medicaid to again cover circumcisions. The procedure was dropped from Medicaid last year as a money-saving move. Several states have stopped covering circumcisions amid concerns that they’re not medically necessary. Colorado projected that it would save about $186,500 a year if it stopped covering circumcisions.

Colorado’s bill was proposed Thursday (1-19-12) by several Democrats. It awaits a hearing in the Senate.

Note from Martin:

Those of us that have been circumcised, to some degree, have accepted it, albeit grudgingly. Circumcision is not natural. It’s not the way we were born. I’m usually not so opinionated on subjects that are considered subjective, but this issue is not subjective, it is wrong to cut off part of a male infant’s penis. There is simply no religious or medical reason that justifies violating a newborn’s human rights.

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Men Outdoors … Chapter Seven

Posted on January 21, 2012 by martin

Photograph by Tom Clark

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Paper & Pencil

Posted on January 20, 2012 by martin

By Pavel Tchelitchew

By HELEN FACENNA

By Oldrich Kulhanek

By Edd Harnas

By Glynn Water

By Erika Baez

By Jules-Louis Machard ( 1839-1900 )

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A Photo Finish

Posted on January 20, 2012 by martin

Hmm, looks like the horse wins.

A Camera & a Man … Minus Clothes

Posted on January 18, 2012 by martin

On the photo sharing site he uses, he goes by the moniker Panding. Whether that’s just a moniker, his name, or simply a word that he likes, I can’t tell you. What I can tell you is: If Mother Nature was a Socialist, we would all look like this.

But Mother Nature is not a Socialist. She’s not even a Capitalist … most of us can’t even aspire to such a striking body. Mother Nature is an Autocrat … she just randomly houses our souls in what can only be described as public housing, then brings us into this world and says: “That’s what you get. Take it or leave it. Now get busy growing old.”

Panding isn’t your average model, wrought with an over-abundance of perfectly honed muscle. He doesn’t have that look how sexy I am look. He looks normal, a genuine nice guy. Of course he’s shaped well, but to look at him is to like him, to want to get to know him. He has that kind of demeanor.

What a natural pose. You wonder what he’s looking at. Is it a building, a sunrise, or is it another person? Are they looking back at him? Is it a man or a woman? Are they as beautiful as him?

Maybe you are as intrigued by men that take pictures of themselves as I am. There is something about it that suggests this is an enlightened man. There is something about it that says he would make an interesting soul mate.

Today, January 23, five days after I posted this piece, Panding contacted me. As it turns out, that is not his name … it’s Stephan, and he is indeed a genuine nice guy, not to mention an intriguing man. Panding stands for Peace Through Understanding.

What follows are his own words.

“Some people find it really odd that I’m so frank about showing myself in the nude. But for me it never has been a big deal, just something natural. Most of that comes from a liberal European upbringing I guess. Germans tend to be very easygoing about being nude. Just come to the lakes around Berlin in summer time.” Continue reading →