I thought it would be interesting to show these pictures by Harry Bush and Quaintance alongside each other, both with Tarzan-ish themes, but more strikingly because they both employ 'vine restraints'.
Quaintance - 'Bacchant' (L), Harry Bush - 'Tarzan Finds Boy' (R)
Bush of course was a near contempory of Quaintance and certainly knew about his work so it's not impossible he took this inspiration from him. The pictures demonstrate how even a single arm restrained above the head is a powerful erotic device and I can't help observing again how elegant these tendrils look compared with the tentacles much beloved of Yaoi artists.
Bush regarded himself as a true artist and the classical posing and polished technique reflects this. Superficially, in this picture, Tarzan steps forward to rescue an ensnared Jungle Boy, but that looks rather like lust in his eyes and he seems to be drawing Jungle Boy's free hand towards his own crotch rather than setting him free. Given the voluptuous buns peeking out from underneath Jungle Boy's loincloth, this desire is entirely understandable. Tarzan's own loincloth has been 'censored' but the outline is sufficient for practised cock-spotters. Harry Bush's 'hidden eroticism' is a little more subtle than some we have seen in recent posts.
There's interesting messages also in the whole language of this picture, placing youthful innocence into a scene of sexual desire together with notions of ensnarement, the wild jungle where civilised norms don't apply and the untamed man emerging from the undergrowth - and yet, the whole scene is a fake - a film set with role-playing actors. Make of it what you will, but there's no denying the genuine artistry at work here.
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