More Art by Oliver Frey

This article adds to my original A-Z review of Oliver Frey's work

Frey - Tennis Victory

 This image was my first glimpse of Oliver Frey's incredible talent for portraying the energetic wrestling of men gripped by lust. The image of bare buttocks pressed against the net still sends a shiver up my spine! In 1970's Britain, visualising gay sex taking place in front of a audience and in a setting of a place like Wimbledon Tennis Club, the epitome of the Establishment, was defiant indeed. 

He also applied his imagery to the equally unlikely sports of Golf and Cricket.

Frey - Bikers in a Dark Alley 1

This image of bikers getting hot in a dark alley was closer to reality but it's frankness also struck a blow for gay freedom of expression. It was gay art of a sort never seen before - high quality and spelling out what gay means without pussy-footing innuendo.  

Frey - Bikers in a Dark Alley 2

Frey revisited the biker subject in many other images of varying degrees of raunchiness which were, astonishingly, published in glossy, top shelf gay magazines without attracting reprisals from the Police, despite the efforts of conservative pressure groups.

Frey - Leather Lube, Biker Oil

The biker persona was perfect for expressing a boisterous, roughly expressed, bursting out of the closet and entering into forbidden places that reflected the spirit of those heady days when gay men felt that even if they weren't completely free exactly, not really able to realise these fantasies in real life, they nevertheless finally had a legitimacy that would enable them to push open doors that had been closed for all those years.

Frey - Biker Elopement

Frey's pictures did not just express excitement, there was an exuberant joy in them.

Imagining the trappings of conventionality and self -restraint being ripped apart.

It was an exciting time to be gay.

Frey - Lover

But he did not just portray excitement and lust

He also showed a vision of gay love as a beautiful thing, 

performed by beautiful people, beautiful men. 

Frey (as Zack) - Splash

His artistic skills here transform the old, tentative, AMG, shower hook-ups into something much more memorable. A loving shared experience of cleansing vitality with fierce, needle-like sprays of water battering and enveloping the two lovers.

Frey - Chains Broken

Frey's character rogue set the scene for a series of gay, comic book heroes whose masculinity was unquestionable and who were assertive and comfortable in their gay sexuality. Rogue's apparent taste for young virgins seems dubious in retrospect, but at the time reflected the common experience of a youth lost to unrequiteable desire. At that time most gay men of all ages probably were virgins or not long out of it and many no doubt saw themselves as his willing victims, given the chance. 

Bill Ward's later creations - Drum and King - were able to be more balanced characters in that respect 

Frey - Hard Wrestle

Frey's depictions of hard, rough sex were about showing the inherent masculinity of gay men, 

a reaction against years of being universally labelled as effeminate and soft.

Frey - Devilry

If homosexuality was the Devil's work, Frey's men boldly embraced that identity 

Frey - Mortal Combat

That vision of gay toughness also pervades his non-gay, fantasy work.

Frey - Tribal 2

Oliver Frey 1948 - 2022

A gay hero

This article adds to my original A-Z review of Oliver Frey's work

see also Night Visitor in the 'targeted' series

Classic Homoerotic Images 10 - Charles Atlas

Charles Atlas - Muscles Made Easy

 It might seem to surprising to label this smiling, slightly pudgy, middle-aged man as an erotic icon, but for many years semi-clad images of him featured prominently and regularly in most boy's lives. This was a time when naked male torsos were a rare sight, other than on beaches and swimming pools but he popped up like this almost everywhere - in newspapers, magazines and even comics specifically aimed at teenagers. Even if you didn't fancy him, his continued presence was a heart-warming affirmation that men's muscles and bare skin were OK and desirable.

Charles Atlas - Sand in the Face ad

Atlas famously conjured the spectre of the beach bully who kicked sand in the faces of ordinary guys just for the fun of it and even if the context was always heterosexual, the message about being gratuitously bullied must have struck a chord with every young, gay man who saw the ad. The claim that you could do something about it and change your life for the better by developing your physique might have promised more than it could really deliver to this particular group. Nevertheless it must planted seeds of self respect and created an awareness of new pathways for isolated, non-sporting, young gays.

 

Charles Atlas testimonials - Health and Strength Dec 1949

I'm not sure that 'Dynamic Tension' really worked but it must have introduced many young men to ways that they could make themselves more attractive, so there's probably more than a grain of truth in these testimonials.

"The Slave" - Charles Atlas leading Tony Sansone

If the gays amongst them had ever seen this image of Charles Atlas 

they might have become even more inspired and excited!

Here, his more youthful self leads the legendary Tony Sansone along, supposedly as his submissive slave. Given Sansone's mega reputation as a muscle man it's an astonishing scenario, on a par with the recent sensationalism of life-long tops being persuaded to bottom for the first time on film. The homoerotic undertones are glaringly obvious*.

Atlas wasn't the prettiest of men by modern criteria but this 'before he was famous' photo suggests that modern styles might have crafted a more than acceptable image for him.

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* Tony Sansone is an interesting figure, noted for his lithe definition rather than the muscle bulk that Atlas and others cultivated. He wasn't a competitive body builder but earned money by nude modelling. There's another teasing image of him posed as a captive in chains (below).

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Click on the label below for more Classic Homoerotic Images

Classic Homoerotic Images 9 - Fred with Tires

 Herb Ritts photograph of 'Fred with Tires' must have been been one of the best known images of 1984 with posters of it adorning countless bedroom walls. For a gay man it's universal popularity was a public validation of their attraction to the naked, male form. The oil-smudged mechanic was unashamedly erotic with undone overalls barely covering his private parts and the plunging lines of his abdomen drawing the eye downwards towards them. At the same time his coy, awkwardness was immensely cute.

This image glamourised the lean, 'cut' physique style that broke away from the traditional, body-building stereotype of plush bulk, represented for years in popular culture by the middle-aged Charles Atlas. Ritts connections with the fashion industry and media played a part in making a muscular physique seem a 'must have' for a young man, widely desirable and attractive. 

40 years on, the butch eroticism seems less powerful. The inoffensive tameness was probably instrumental in it's success but there are 8 more photographs in the series, many of them much more sexy. 

Herb Ritts - Fred with tires No 4

You can see the rest at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. Their collection also has other images of Fred by Ritts, including the extraordinary, booted naked shower with 'Dan'.

The original image has come to define manliness and has inspired countless artist and photographers to copy the idea, those of Priapus of Milet (in Shooting the Past) and ASN, are both represented here at mitchmen blog. When these tributes appear they bring a fond, nostalgic smile to the lips of old-timers who were around at the time.

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Click on the label below for more Classic Images and/or mechanics

Classic Homoerotic Images 8

This joyous image by Colt of a leather man joyfully celebrating his sexuality and the freedom to express it marked the high point of 'liberation' around 1980 when anything seemed possible. Men who didn't subscribe to this magazine probably saw the cover advertised. It couldn't have failed to warm the cockles of their heart. Despite the leather referencing, it seems to embrace the whole gay community, what gay men shared rather than what differentiated them. It was an assertion that gay men were masculine, happy and balanced as individuals.

Colt - Gene Winchester

The full image, seen in this slightly different variant, was rather more racy, more assertively gay you might say. Gene Winchester clutching his crotch and failing to hide a generous bush of pubic hair. You might see PlayGuy's 1978 cover adaptation as a cop-out, but it's actually rather effective at implying what you don't see and they did have a full-frontal, centre page spread of this model inside. 

This magazine, by aping the title of the famously 'acceptable' heterosexual publication, represented a stab at equalisation, an attempt to secure a permanent place for gay magazines on the 'normal' bookshelves, away from the sleazy top shelf. Consequently the contents rarely lived up to the promise of the cover. It did managed to survive, however, without further compromise  until 2009 by which time the boys of Bel Ami had elbowed Colt musclemen out of the way.

I adapted this imagery myself in one of my early pictures - see next post.

Classic Homoerotic Images 7

Few mothers could have imagined that this wholesome breakfast dish with it's equally wholesome image of outdoor, athletic endeavour and strength on the packaging would be responsible for alerting generation after generation of innocent offspring to the allure of the male body which lay latent within them.

It's easy to blame the skirt - sorry, kilt, but no, that's a different category of interest altogether. Those muscular shoulders and the tight-fitting, pec-enhancing vest were something I was attracted to even before I had any inkling of why, let alone how lifelong that attraction would become.

That Scotsman was temptation incarnate.

In the 1950's the muscles were crudely censored, little realising that the jolly fisherman 
out looking for a catch in his rolled-down waders was equally corrupting! 
The pair of them together made a fine imaginary coupling

And so say all of us!

More about Scotts Porridge Oats

Classic Homoerotic Images 6

 I have taken the liberty of repeating this image from a recent post 
to accord it it's rightful place in my series of homoerotic classics.

Tom Of Finland - Leather Lovers (1963)

Tom's image of two leather men sensuously nuzzling dicks a classic.

Their affectionate embrace is a bold assertion of the true nature of gay sexuality.

It has deservedly become a much-loved expression of Gay Pride.

Arguably the greatest Homoerotic Image of them all.

Contrast this image with the superficially similar image of cowboys helping each other to dress by Colt. It was pirated by Vivienne Westwood to adorn T-shirts during the punk era, a supposedly shocking product. Colt's image is 6 years later than Tom's and it's deliberately camp. It's another valid view of gay relationships but one that only embraces sexuality in an amusing, titillating way. Westwood's use of it may have been a public recognition of the gay world, but did little to alter perceptions of homosexuality.

Classic Homoerotic Images 5

 If you were an 'out' gay man in the 1980's you could not have failed to know this image, 

It seemed to occupy the back cover of every single gay magazine.

The homoerotic element is obvious - a man with muscles, ripped clothes and a prominent pouch. But the portrayal of him straddling and controlling a wild beast was no less potent. The ad was obviously suggesting wonderful men and wild times were to be had at the baths, but even to non-bathers the association of this sort of power and assertiveness with being gay seemed immensely new and empowering. 

The faceless, grey men trying to stop the rider seemed to epitomise the idea of gays breaking free from the secrecy, negativity and contempt which most of them had endured for their whole lives. 

Gay men, it said, are different, we are strong and beautiful, and we will free ourselves.

No one was to know that within months a different sort of beast, HIV, was to rampage through these same baths, cruelly curtailing that joyous freedom. It would briefly reinvigorate the homophobes but ultimately brought gays together more than ever to claim our rights and place in society. 

The ad uses the Boris Vallejo picture 'Mysterious Rider' (1978), without alteration as far as I know. 

The clone-y moustache was a perfect fit for the era.

Read more about New St Marks Baths 
Opened in 1979, it was closed down for 'health reasons' in 1985

for other Classic Homoerotic Images and other mitchmen posts with a 'Pride' theme
click on the labels at the foot of this post. 

Classic Homoerotic Images 4 - Levi Laundromat

This TV advert for Levi jeans starring Nick Kamen caused a sensation when it was first aired in 1985. Nick's public disrobing was not exactly shocking back then but it wasn't the sort of thing shown on TV and ads in the UK were still being policed by regulators. Somehow it escaped censure though.

For gay men, though, the homoerotic impact of a man stripping off on prime-time TV in an everyday scene was even greater. It must have been an unforgettable milestone for many teenagers in their journey to self-awareness. 

Naturally, the ad itself was couched in heterosexual terms with females and an old man watching the strip performance. It was easy to miss suggestively gay references in the opening seconds, a soldier loitering outside misses seeing Nick's ass arrive and a kid reading a comic suddenly looks up and finds Nick's jeans close up very interesting. 

The theme was borrowed by hunky rugby player Thom Evans for a health campaign in 2015

 Levi laundromat video borrowed from U-Tube

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For other homoerotic classics in this mitchmen series click on the label below.

See also My Beautiful Launderette

Classic Homoerotic Images - 3, When Freedom Dawned

Ralph Kleiner (Muscleboy Magazine, 1966)

The kitsch artistry and baggy pouch which Ralph Kleiner was subjected to on the front of Muscleboy in 1996 seems to epitomise the desperate concealment needed for gay magazines to get onto newsagent's shelves back then. However this image does show a romantic side to the male personality, feminine if you like, which wasn't exactly a commonplace statement in the time when men were still men. 

On top of that, he's nearly naked (implying sex is in the air) and the object of his rapt attention is a freak flower, a blue (for a boy) rose. You sense he's going to kiss it - or even eat it, God forbid! The fake nature all around him and the blue sky just over the horizon seems to invoke the sense of an optimistic, fantastical journey, just like Dorothy's in The Wizard of Oz. 

In it's way it's a very clever, political statement, deserving of it's place in my series of classic, homoerotic images. (click on the label below for others)

Glenn Bishop (Vagabond Magazine, 1966)

Compare that Muscleboy image with this openly erotic display of Glenn Bishop showing pubic hair on the Front Cover, no less, of Vagabond magazine in the same year, 1966. Admittedly, this was the era when liberation from censorship began, but I didn't think it had got quite as far as this! Glenn Bishop was arguably a gay hero, the handsome embodiment of 1950's coy, physique pouch imagery, so the sight of this must have been electric back then, a shock, almost unwelcome, as though someone like Ed Sheeran had suddenly revealed all today to demonstrate that he's just a man after all.

I think freedom came more quickly in the US than the UK and it's possible that the Vagabond issue illustrated above was for postal distribution rather than book shops. In fact I've never heard of Vagabond magazine before so maybe it never made it in into the quivering hands of sex-starved, 1966 gays at all! Not in the UK anyway.

Vagabond Magazine No 7 carried ads for gay singles

Vagabond Magazine also has an interesting link to what might be the first 'openly' gay record album, 'Love is a Drag', issued by Lace records in 1962, which featured a (straight) man singing standards, but re-gendered to be about loving other men. Vagabond No 7 in 1965 carried ads for gay singles from a different label 'Camp', including 'I'd Rather Fight Than Swish', 'Rough Trade' and 'The Ballad of the Camping Woodcutter'. The whole story is told in Subversive Sounds.

The cover of No 7 (above) featured 'respectable', men's, fashion graphics, but they are arranged in such a way as to be looking at each other, the back cover man invisibly reaching out towards another's ass while an onlooker fiddles in his pockets. Such was the meagre, but subtly exciting, fare for gays back then. Little did they know that Glenn Bishop's pubes were about to be thrust in their faces!

The cover for Vagabond No8 openly ditches the ambiguity that men's magazines are about muscle development and physique (an idea that persists in the Muscleboy, Ralph Kleiner image above). Instead it depicts a fairly ordinary young man looking up hopefully in another naturalistic setting, an image which clearly is about him as a person, not his gym programme. 

 So Vagabond too has a honourable place in gay history.

Classic Homoerotic Images - 2

Joy, from 'Squares' series by Irwin Olaf

It's hard to imagine this picture causing controversy but it was apparently banned by Gay Times back in the eighties (yes, it's that old! See clarification below). Admittedly it's a not very subtle reference to ejaculation but that strikes us as being saucy these days, not pornographic. This image isn't even gay, intrinsically, but quickly achieved an iconic status in gay media when it first appeared.

The detail of the cascading foam is intriguing, it doesn't quite look as you would expect it too look and we can see it is still shooting from the bottle when a quite a lot is already running down the boy's thigh and dripping from the underside of the bottle. Was it done in one take or were whole crates of bubbly needed to get to this image?  However it's been created it's quite an impressive technical achievement. 

More pictures by Irwin Olaf at mitchmen blog

Critique of Irwin Olaf

2021 Exhibition of Olaf's work

Irwin Olaf website

 Read the mitchmen 'Classic Homoerotic Images' series from No 1

Classic Homoerotic Images - 1

 It's hard to believe that this image of Kent Strom by the photographer Stan of Sweden is over 50 years old. For me it reeks of the erotic and yet it's perfectly decent, not even a suggestive lump in his trunks. 

The model has a striking face and a beautifully muscled body but his underlying 'heroic' pose here is relatively mundane, beefcake stuff. However the photographer has artfully enhanced the classic tapered torso effect using a slight twist in the body and clever shadowing of the upper buttock. It creates a forward thrusting body line which is neatly finished by the shape of the model's trunks disappearing between his legs.

The same skill in lighting draws attention to the model's plentiful, blond, body hair which was (and is still) usually shaved off for photos. It does appear to have been trimmed around the lower abdomen and to some extent it's washed out by glare, but the faint, stubble-like traces that remain visible are actually sexier than a bush would be. Similarly, that front thigh hair is oh, so sexy and the photographer has somehow contrived to make it disappear at the very edges of the trunks so that the modest pouch appears to glow from within from it's hidden delights.  

The trunks themselves also enhance the model's torso shape, they are relatively skimpy for the era with a plunging waistline and arched leg openings that skirt across the top of the buttocks (tactfully shaded at the rear). The laced up sides are possibly the most overtly suggestive element of all but appear to be tightly knotted for the sake of decency. The shaping of the front of the pouch is similarly restrained and hidden by the dark colour but a solitary break in the outline gives enough idea of substance within which would fit neatly into a cupped hand.

A final, scarcely noticeable stroke of genius on the part of the photographer is the inclusion of lighter coloured triangles at the bottom corners of the picture. These accentuate the tapering of the body and draw the eye downwards. It's almost as through the model is trapped within a vase-like shape, a faintly mitchmen-esque association.

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It's a measure of the homoerotic impact of this image that it was used as the basis of a much more explicit image by the great, gay artist, 'Rex'.

Rex - Harness

Rex stripped the model naked and gave him a more striking 'crest' of head hair. He also equipped him with nipple rings and a leather harness. The usual ring at the meeting point of the straps was replaced by an emphatic gay triangle which gives a clue to the dating of the image in the early days of 'gay liberation'. 

Sanitised versions of the image were widely used in gay print advertisements 

See more Rex at mitchmen blog

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There are many images by Stan of Sweden on the net but they are usually not labelled well enough to find easily and many are ignored anyway by search engines because they are too old. Homobilia has a small collection of images by Stan with other interesting examples of his photographic skill and subtle sense of the erotic.