The Fetish Art of Beau

Beau shot to prominence in the 90's on  the strength of his eminently publishable pictures which featured rich colours and beautiful men and avoided sexual explicitness. I passed over him when I compiled the letter B of my A-Z of fetish artists, but reviewing his work now, that may have been mistaken. The understated invocation of fetish ingredients in some of his pictures makes a worthy contribution to our collection and the lush treatment (I can't really say romantic!) is a welcome break from starker contributions to the genre.

click on any image to enlarge

 This is one of the best. This man sprawled on a dishevelled bed and sporting a cropped military-style haircut and cute bubble butt make an extremely attractive image, even without the rope bindings holding him down in this inviting position and the open scissors discarded between his legs with one blade pointing ominously in the general direction of interest. It looks as if his underpants have just been cut open to reveal this sight, though some might prefer to imagine that he's just had an impromptu unsought haircut. Squaddiefication you might call it (Jarheadification hasn't quite got the same ring). Either way that look tells us he knows there more to come.

 There's a great sense of drama in this study of two men in the throes of passion. We don't need to see explicit detail to know what is going on, the faces say it all and it looks as if there's an element of forcefulness in play adding the spice of fetish domination to their intimacy.

This image is less serious in intent, the recipient of the razor's attentions is not restrained other than by his partner's hand but still he cannot contain his excitement at losing all of his body hair. Shaving features fairly regularly in my posts (see label below for more) but in this one, unusually, it looks like we've already missed the main action - unless his blond head hair is also up for it. For me those blue shorts make a great embellishment for the top, suggesting his other sporty interests.
There's also a curious mix of 'mood' items in the surroundings, with suggestions of ancient Greece jostling with Transylvanian candelabras. I love the phallic candle holder in the left foreground, a case of hidden eroticism where it isn't really needed!

Medical fetish is not just about scalpels and gas masks, or endless anal examination for that matter! In this image, Beau cuts through to the underlying ingredients of helplessness and intimacy with strangers at levels such as are usually reserved for lovers. If you have ever experienced this in real life, you'll know it can also come right out of the blue and submitting to it (as one must), with only a flimsy curtain shielding the sight from dozens of other people is almost inevitably an erotic experience of some significance. Whilst romance like Beau depicts here rarely blossoms out of such encounters, it is probably a faithful imagining of what is going on in the head of many recipients, who in a weakened state are intensely grateful for the succour that medical professionals give so freely. If you look closely, you'll notice that there's a playful ambiguity about the composition of the white substance on the patient's stomach.

There's a story behind this image which I haven't discovered yet. The collegiate pennants and sporting slogans place us in the realms of institutional initiation, but the cigar-smoking top with gloved hand and trainers is surely a coach, doing what coaches used to do but ain't supposed to any more (and I'm not talking about smoking on the job!). Tying up the initiate is usually reserved for the student level of pranks but it helps build a slightly sinister flavour in this context, which does not go amiss when it comes to giving youth a first, exciting lesson in anal intimacy.

There's no ambiguity about the dominance or aggression in this back alley encounter gone bad. As in the medical image above, Beau uses clothing to help assert the power hierarchy. His depiction of the classic, foot-on-body, intimidation tactic works better than most I have seen. Reading the body language, however, it looks like the chap on the ground is going to get away with a severe telling off despite his presently, severely endangered nether regions. 

The scarcely any less menace in this scene either and the alarm of the surprised garage hand is beautifully captured. Beau has got the allure of unzipped overalls (worn without underclothes natch) down to a tee here and placing us in the driver's seat allows us to salivate over that prospect in the knowledge that the object of our lust is already at a disadvantage, with back to the wall. 

One for bedtime musings.

Strangely enough, when Beau strikes out into classic dungeonalia the result is less immediately stirring to the juices, although he does invoke a nice sense of isolation and anxiety in his prisoner who is also refreshingly normal. The ropes holding the prisoner's hands are more like tethers than demanding restraints but Beau redeems this weakness with his right leg lift which is not only awkward and embarrassing for the prisoner, it's also putting a lot of painful stress on his other knee which does not need any restraint in this situation of course. 

Actually it's not a dungeon, that's a carpet he's kneeling on, a concession to comfort that makes such a devious torture much more practical over an extended time scale. It also tells us that this scene is being played out in the living quarters of some well-heeled but very unpleasant gentleman. The devil. as they say. is in the detail so never neglect to check it out!

Kidnap scenarios are tricky subjects in erotica but Beau dodges round that objection by exposing minimal flesh in the process. It looks a bit stagey, particularly the operatic, outstretched arm which surely ought to be behind his back, you can already see a ghostly impression of his elbow sticking out down there. The 'athlete's' mature appearance and combination of clothes is also distinctly odd. But if you focus on the two kidnappers, you can see that a much more memorable image somehow got away here

Fever

My final image is unashamed beefcake and not really fetish unless you give significant weight to uniforms, but it's probably my favourite out of all Beau's pictures. The pugnacious-looking, but lusciously muscled protagonist seems a natural for the military garb and bears a striking family resemblance to another favourite of mine, Etienne's much-abused blond from Night Patrol and other awkward situations. In the jungle camp setting his glistening body, spotlit in warm colours, brilliantly invokes the 'Fever' of the picture's title.

 Man Fever, Peggy and I would say!.

Beau is no longer with us and his work is harder to find than it used to be.

Two glossy books of Beau's work have been published by Bruno Gmunder (inc. Men of Beau No 2)

There's a selection with links at gay art collection and more at Daddyshere with interesting bio

The Art of Paul Richmond (PaulyPants)

The erotic art I feature in this blog is usually inclined to be on the serious side and reflect fetish interests, but like anyone else I enjoy lighter work too and judging by the interest in my article on Eddie Chin a while ago, so do my readers. The work of Kimura is innocently appealing to me but the work of fetishists like Jonathan and Palanca is also steeped in good humour. So it's easy to make room here for Paul Richmond.

Beach Bum

Richmond's 'PaulyPants' creations are entertaining and not entirely without interest to fetish minds.

 Most of us have wanted to do something like this at some time to frivolously signal an interest in a man who looks difficult to approach. However, if you mentally magic away his pulled down pants, the pose that is left suggests a much more earthy sexual interaction in prospect. This image is on a par with the 'hidden eroticism' of days gone by (click on label below for more).

The dog walker in the background, stumbling on this scene, adds the spice of public exposure, but his dog also brings to mind the butt-sniffing proclivities of that species and suggests the possibility of a more complex, dependent and possibly dark relationship developing (or already developed!) between the two men in the foreground. It would be a relationship not entirely consistent with the 'Freedom flag' design of the rainbow pants - although I suppose there are those that may say that Freedom to sniff a complete strangers ass on a beach is what it's all about.

Click to expand

 The artist acknowledges his inspiration from 1950's glamour art in this picture, 'Stop, Shop and Drop'. His caption is a lot wittier, but it's interesting to see that, unlike the original, his modern 'liberated male' version does not entail the entire loss of panties. There's not even a glimpse of cheek. I acknowledge that there will be those that will find this level of suggestiveness more sexy than the 'full monty' but the comparison highlights just how sexy it was possible to be in pre-liberation days - providing you were heterosexual of course. The triangle formed by the girl's rigid legs and panties is subtly suggestive in itself, and the wind blowing the skirt between her legs does more than just expose her thighs and highlight her ass. These elements are absent from Richmond's version but you do get a more impressive bunch of celery stalks!

Size Matters

 This example shows the artist is not averse to offering saucy details and the positioning and clenching of the tailor's hand needs no explanation either. I say tailor, but his poor fitting trousers and muscular arms might be clues to an impostor taking the opportunity to get up close and personal. Which might explain why the customer (unusually) is having to stand on a chair, bringing his crotch up to a convenient level for checking sizes. You get the feeling he's a bit naive and the pristine trainers (which are a nice detail) somehow contribute to this.

Naughty or Nice

PaulyPants is not the first artist to pick up on Santa's question 'have you been a good boy this year?' but he's neatly linked it to another less innocent expression with the title of this piece. Presumably the opened gift box originally contained the smiley pants now providing a target area for Santa's verdict. The recipient of the spanking does not look overly youthful but these pants are not the stuff that adults usually wear. His 'gift' almost seems to be part of a well defined punishment ritual signalling temporary demotion to boyhood, the spanking equivalent of the Black Spot in Treasure Island.

 In the light of the revelations of recent years you might see uncomfortable suggestions of innocence exploited in this image which the artist did for a book cover. Bathing another man is a deeply personal service and deeply tempting too if he's built like this. The cowboy boots in the foreground give him added stature (what size are they you wonder?)

Forgive me Father

 I'm drawn to the crucifixion imagery here but there's a more overtly religious theme with the angelic boys seeming providing a more obvious representation of temptation and martyrdom for the tempted. I'm not sure about that but this may be a book cover too, reflecting the story within. However Richmond often uses religious symbols in his work, sometimes mockingly, so it's not obvious what his slant is. You'll see what I mean in the next image.

This comes from another strand of Richmond's work reflecting the current fad for adult colouring books and if you visit his site you will find dozens of contributions of his outline pictures, coloured by his fans. This example caught my eye initially because of the nod to the story of St Sebastian. If you imagine away the man's right leg, a tempting, if excruciating, target presents itself and I'm not sure the original sketch wasn't drawn that way if you look at how the jeans seem to be distorted. Beyond such degenerate thoughts however, the lip motif's on those underpants are sheer genius in their intrinsic eroticism and strategic placement!

 

This is an example of Paul Richmond's more serious work. His use of colour and texture is bold, highlighting the masculinity of his models with overlays of thick brightly coloured paint that are sometimes both disturbing and intriguing, particularly when applied to the face (which my example does not show). It's not unlike the extremes of stage/performance make-up from which he seems to draw his inspiration. See more at the website (link below)

I found this piece on one of Paul Richmond's sites. I'm not sure if it's by him as the style is quite unlike his other work but it's worth presenting anyway on it's own merits as a picture. There's a fairly artsy overlay of Japanese influences in the colouring, the twisted branches and the cherry blossom-like pink blotches. The result is both sensual and pleasing.

Sleigh Ride

  I'll finish with one of his more memorable 'PaulyPants' creations, Christmas seems to inspire him and this present seems to have dropped from heaven (if you'll forgive yet another religious reference!). He comes gift-wrapped in clingy, reindeer motif underpants, a device that bestows youth and innocence as noted above. The partially ripped jeans seem to suggest he's ready for more adult things and you'll see that the artist has tailored the tear into the erotically suggestive, triangular shape, whose absence I lamented in the 'shop and drop' image above. 

Clearly the title does not mean what it appears to mean at first sight. If you're looking for more of PaulyPants unique brand of hidden eroticism, just imagine the bearded man turning his head to the front. Suddenly the strange positioning of the falling youth makes perfect sense - or have they simply been interrupted by a bump in the road?.

As in many of his pictures, there's a distinct (if not enormous) age difference depicted here and sometimes Richmond seems to be walking a tightrope above dangerous waters by dressing his men in the apparel of immaturity. The result, whether intentional or not, is to give an original twist to the fetish fundamentals of dominance and power.

See lots more at Paul Richmond's website and his Deviant art page

First Catch Your Rogue - 7 Kain Spanked

Kain had a cute face and a charming personality.

He was kind to older folk and they loved him.

So it was only logical that he got himself a job

helping those who couldn't do housework any more.
.

One day he was making Mr Brownlow's bed

and found his life savings hidden under the mattress.

There was quite a lot of money in an old shoe box

The old boy wouldn't miss a few quid, he thought.
.

 Unfortunately, Mr Brownlow counted his money every night

So he found Kain out right away, but he didn't mind.

They came to an arrangement to keep the young man in funds
 - and out of the hands of the law

For other 'rogues' click on the label below

Drubskin Republished

Drubskin - Watersport

As part of my on-going updating of early entries in the A-Z of Fetish Artists, I have now substantially revised my article on Drubskin, adding more pictures and reappraising his fetish credentials, widening the substance of the review.

Postscript to Men Sharing Clothes No 23

The scene of rugby players swapping shorts in my last post comes from a match played a surprisingly long time ago in 2001 in fact, an NRL match between the Canberra Raiders and the Newcastle Knights. (I only discovered the images a year or so ago and was amazed to learn the true date of the incident while researching this article). 

Andrew 'Joey' Johns #7 of the Knights and Brett Finch also #7 of the Raiders swapped shorts at the end of the match which the Knights narrowly won 22-20. 

You can almost guess the player identities just from their names, 
the chap in the pictures below is Brett Finch.

 

You can see in these pictures that he had a serious demeanour quite a lot of the time 
even when he was relaxing in the beefcake picture below.

In contrast to this 'Joey' Johns was obviously a bit of a joker
with a strapping build which must have been quite intimidating on the field.

If you research his career you will find colourful episodes including the picture below
which was not what it seemed apparently

The pictures below may not have come from the same match
but they are the same teams and you can see Brett is getting a bit of stick.

It must have been extremely disappointing for Brett in the 'shorts swap' match

to be on the losing end by such a narrow margin.

and it must have been extremely tempting to Joey 

to give his opposite number a good ribbing in traditionally, robust Australian style.

Hence the assertive swap proposal and reluctant donor.

All I can say is "nice work chaps!"

For other 'sharing' episodes click on the label below

Men Sharing Clothes No 23 - Rugby Shorts

Despite my periodic infatuation with Rugby Hunks I never thought I'd be able to feature them, (real ones!), in this thoroughly disreputable series, which fantasises about men unwittingly donning clothes that have already been thoroughly worn by another man, ideally in a scenario involving lots of (ahem) 'physical effort'. Usually it's male models and porn stars who provide my material, for fairly obvious reasons.

We all know about soccer players swapping shirts with their opposite numbers at the end of a match and I suppose one shouldn't be surprised to discover Rugby players (being the gung-ho males that they are) going further and swapping their shorts. Curiously, in this first gif it looks as if the player on the left is having to be persuaded to participate in this dubious public spectacle.

He doesn't look too happy here either, apparently red in the face in the face with embarrassment as another of his opponents weighs in. These pictures were taken during a real match in Australia where butchness is mandatory for heteros, so his anxiety is not entirely surprising.

In contrast, his opposite number is much more eager to get his crotch into those lovely green shorts and he doesn't exactly look like a pussy!

No 7's reluctance to participate is unwittingly providing spectators with a much more interesting and protracted show. The internet abounds with the bare bottoms of Rugby players exposed by desperate opponents who will clutch at any item of clothing or appendage to stop a breakthrough. For me though, the glimpses of underwear when a player changes his shorts are much more alluring. It's just a pity they are not white though.

There's something distinctly fetishistic about the way Mr Eager adjusts his hem, pulling the fabric of his new green shorts against his inner thigh. I say fabric but sadly these shorts are plastic and give little indication of the previous wearer's occupancy, however such materials generally tend to promote sweatiness.

No 7's face is looking so pained at this point that his partner in crime feels compelled to give him some manly encouragement. It's alright for him, the green shorts actually look pretty good against his thighs, although no gay man would countenance wearing that combination of colours in public.

 

From this direction the gesture looks slightly more ambiguous, 

perhaps a last calculated move to put his opponent off his stroke?

My next post will give some background on the match and two players concerned

A-Z of Fetish Artists - Yoshiyo

I'm rounding off the letter 'Y' with this is a nice picture of a bound, young man by the artist Yoshiyo'.

It's a nice clean image with decent technical style but surprisingly I've not been able to find anything more abour the artist so I don't have a link for him.

For more articles in this series click on the A-Z label below or search for specific artists using the index page or search boxes (top navigation panel and top right in side-bar)

A-Z of Fetish Artists - yy6242

You don't get much sense of what yy6242 is all about from his moniker and this bondage image is  equally shrouded in self restraint. Almost literally, because the shady looking character working his captive from behind here is a mere supporting player, only fuzzily defined. It's all about the captive, seemingly imagining this ghastly fate and there's no sense of interaction with the intruder (which I take him to be). The flying perspiration suggests embarrassment to my eyes (but this code can work differently in other cultures). Anyway he's sharing that emotion with us. Strange things happen when Dad is Home Alone.

Face

This beautiful image of a crying man is no less suggestive of powerful emotions simmering below the surface and it's not the only example of tears in this artists work (click on the link at the foot of this post). The whole face seems to express vulnerability and sensitivity. You might have guessed at the artist's Asian origins from the first picture but not this one. If there's an element of self in this intensely emotional image it's well-disguised. The artist's own choice of title doesn't give much away either.

 We're on less taxing ground here with an animal morph enjoying the fruits of man, but it makes an intriguing companion for the slightly mysterious preceding images. This creature has a purely human body and it is extremely masculine. His animal self is represented only by two ears (which supplement his human ones (!) and the hint of a bushy tail (wagging happily). So there's a sense of half-heartedness about his beastliness, while the physical restraints, prison number and facial expression allow similar ambiguity about his whole commitment to this encounter. I have a title of 'love' on this piece but I don't know if that is the artists own.

Soldier 76

This heroic figure with his cold calculating gaze is the opposite of such expressiveness, but it's very pretty. You can see that the face has had the most attention and things get vaguer as we descend towards the nether regions. The talent of the artist speaks for itself, but it's a shame we can't see below the waist, clothed or otherwise.

Suit Guy

Just to show this artist's work is not all serious. This looks like a study for a game or comic character and it shows an interesting combination of the heroic and the sensitive traits observed above. Once again though, the artist's dead-pan title leaves you wondering what he is trying to say or not say here.

Reinhardt Pool Party

I don't know who Reinhardt is but you can tell by his spiky beard and blind eye that he's a fantasy/game character who's taken time off from defending the Universe for the more mundane role of lifeguard. It's deliberately incongruous of course but he's been given a job here which is not just heroic, but which in the gay universe drips with youthful sexuality (not counting Hasselhof!). So even in this frivolous piece there's a sense of exploration of identity and desire.

 

Man

 Just a picture of a man, so the artist tells us, but this thoughtful character is oozing with desirable manliness that seems to go beyond his physical appearance. He's not quite naked but the picture cuts off just short of showing us something interesting. It feels like we're observing him furtively while he goes about some manly task, the yellow line suggesting a sporting link, or perhaps he's walking along the road, going home after a jolly night on the town, which might explain the slight fleshiness around his waist.

You can find more work by yy6242 on Deviant Art

He also goes by the name of DOPQ on Instagram,  and Pixiv

For more articles in this series click on the A-Z label below or search for specific artists using the index page or search boxes (top and top right)

A-Z of Fetish Artists - Yoshikazu Yasuhiko

 

This artist is known to me only for one work and it's a work relating to a niche interest that I would normally shy away from mentioning in this blog, namely religion and specifically the subject of 'The Crucifixion'. Imagery of this event forms the focus of that religion (despite the injunction of it's own prophets not to worship graven images) but it's quite commonly and casually referred to in the wider world as 'homo-erotic'. This is said with subversive intent of course, but the implication that images of torture and painful execution are a staple ingredient of gay erotica and of universal appeal is surprising to say the least! However.......

Regardless of this I know Crucifixion imagery is of interest to readers with S&M leanings. Yoshikazu's work tells the religious story in a frank, direct way that is quite interesting but his exploration of the mechanics of the process, starting with the nailing (above) certainly delves into the fundamentals of what makes this a sado-masochistic subject. Perhaps unsurprising given his Japanese ancestry.

Thus, straight away in this image we see the victim in the hands of soldiers intent on subjecting him to an extreme (life-ending) process. He is stripped of his clothes, all the trappings of life, all that shields him and separates him from other men. He is violated, being attached to the cross by a gang of men in a way that is crude, painful and virtually irreversible, removing all possibility of escape.  Finally he he is raised up for everyone to see and view his demise. Danger, helplessness, vulnerability, fear, violation, pain, humiliation. All these ingredients are laid out in these few frames and they are the essence of any S&M scene. Why such things should be erotic to those of us in this brotherhood is something of a mystery*, but the sketchy thumbnail in the bottom left corner is enough to confirm it's potency in this respect.

*My personal view, for what it's worth, is that if such things as those listed above, such bad feelings, are a prominent part of our lives, then sexualising them, associating them with pleasure, in effect defuses them and ultimately through the mechanism of orgasm, it discharges them, temporarily at least.

 

 In these frames the artist depicts the application of this terrible process to his narrator, a young man who has killed a roman soldier. In religious terms his guilt is meant to legitimise his treatment and to highlight the injustice to his 'innocent' companion on the adjacent cross. Likewise the use of ropes to secure him contrasts with the brutality of nails used elsewhere. 

However, in erotic terms, Yoshikazuo's choice of a particularly boyish-looking man for this role sparks off alarm bells. Fortunately his physique suggests a relatively maturer age than his face does. If the artist intended to provide a character in this story with whom younger readers could identify, then making him a 'sinner' of a pretty extreme kind follows a path of guilt logic that is peculiarly Catholic, or Japanese, or maybe both. Note the Japanese influence in the loin cloth design too.

As is customary, Yoshikazu's detailed exploration of the crucifixion process skirts round the engineering challenges of erecting a giant cross with victim attached into a stable position using only primitive technology. I don't imagine Roman soldiers signed up for getting a hernia by doing this job! One of the mysteries of construction history to set alongside Stonehenge and the Pyramids (and the provision of gallows in Western Townships!).

 Fortunately, the other two participants in this grisly tale are indisputably adult men. The concept of simultaneously torturing 3 men from different backgrounds is a device that amplifies the helplessness factor in S&M scenes, for those of masochistic tendencies. It invites them to visualise fellow-sufferers in a strange buddying arrangement that actually goes to the essence of our humanity as social animals.

 For sadistic minds it conveys a sense of greater power and a mechanism (illustrated here) for charting the degradation and breaking of the victims. This thieves mode of execution is probably the most extreme of the 3 men and that is vividly conveyed to the viewer, as is his masculinity despite his desperate plight. The bickering that erupts at this point is not without justification to objective observers.

 

The message of the upper picture suffers from the familiarity of the scene. The rather clumsy dialogue suggesting humiliation is subtly undermined by a composition that seeks to sanctify. In contrast, the more intimate lower image is a much more telling (and interesting) account of a man facing death. The artist draws out more details of the victim's suffering and bravery. (In contrast his companion seems cold and indifferent). If I were to describe this as a breath control scene you might see it in a completely different light.

 

The hot daytime orange of the scenes above is replaced by dramatic blues as menacing storm clouds make a typically mystical intervention. This image is pure propaganda but you have to admire the technique as the young narrator looks up to his (now) regal companion, offering himself up to the coming storm. The lads attitude is a stark contrast to the resentment of No 3, but I know who I prefer!

 

It's not part of the usual story but Yoshikazu even depicts the pathetic expiry of the young narrator and he does it in terms that can only be described as voluptuous. In seeking to express the desperate efforts of the crucified man to draw his final breaths he shows us muscles that are deeply folded by his exertions, all well and good. But these muscles are so well rounded they are positively alluring and give no sense of the physical deterioration and dehydration which will have brought him to this point. A heroic death, but not a realistic one.

You can easily find out about Yoshikazu's manga work on-line but I don't think there's much else of a gay flavour to find, tell me if I'm wrong!

There are already many other examples of crucifixion posted in this blog, which you can view by clicking the label at the foot of this post. Most of these depict it as an abstract , intimidating punishment or trial of strength and do not feature the iconography that specifically connects it to the Christian Religion.

For more articles in this series click on the A-Z label below or search for specific artists using the index page or search boxes (top and top right)