mitchmen by Mitchell

Saturday, 3 January 2009

Mitchell's 'In Praise of Sailors' - 15

Etienne was a contemporary of Tom but his take on sailors is quite different. For a start they are never properly dressed. The uniforms are not there to be squeezed into but to be worn (or partly worn) as ‘badges’ telling us about the man be are viewing. Thus in (55) one sailor’s uniform is not worn at all but hanging on the wall.

(55)

This early picture is in the same ‘yearning’ tradition as the other 50’s and 60’s artists we have looked at but we are left in no doubt that the underlying desire is lust and not admiration!

The sailor in (56) (from a calendar) would be a strikingly attractive figure if his uniform were worn as intended. Tom would have shown ample crotch bulge to express an erotic message. As seen by Etienne, however, the crotch is hardly visible but the sexiness of the partly undressed sailor is far more powerful.

(56)

Incidentally, all the pictures in this Calendar series feature an arm contributing to the action in some way. It presumably belongs to the artist and, though muscular and tattooed, it is depicted in a rather camp pose. Again typical of the time.

*
The state of undress continues in the next picture where (57) two sailors are brawling in a bar and, in the process, are ripping their uniforms to shreds, revealing large amounts of attractive bare flesh.

(57)

Ripping clothes is a uncomplicated way to show sexual aggression so it introduces an interesting ambiguity into the fight we are seeing. As far as I can recall Tom never used this device. But Etienne was uncompromisingly sexy. This picture is a detail of a larger piece in which other sailors are fighting in similar ways. It is interesting in that it shows a real (if unsavoury) slice of life, an insight into the animal nature of sailors, which Tom only hints at in his ‘spilt coffee’ picture.

*

The final picture is from Etienne’s series ‘Navy Grease’ in which a sailor is first abused by the crew and then by the Captain when he complains.

(58)

The opening pictures of this set of which (58) is one, rank amongst Etienne’s best work for me. The draughtsmanship is excellent. Unlike Tom’s sailors you don’t get sensual clothing effects which hold the eye but the storytelling and visual characterisation of the men is very, very good. The bullying of Tom’s ‘spilt coffee’ picture has moved on apace here but atmosphere is quite different. The victim seems younger and, despite his fine physique, more vulnerable. He is also facing more than one tormentor so the message seems less about domination than exploitation. For me this is not so erotic but others may love this particular power play. Instead of formal dress, Etienne uses the working clothes of sailors in these pictures, harking back to those WWII Pacific War films, I suppose, but another indicator of his ‘real life‘ viewpoint.

Continued here

Read this series from episode 1

Friday, 2 January 2009

Mitchell's 'In Praise of Sailors' - 14

Like MacLane, Tom drew sailors together on board ship in the early 60‘s.
In (51) a sailor shows off his tattoo - Tom did quite a collection of tattoo scenes about this time.

(51)

You can’t miss the bulge of course and the close proximity to it of the recumbent sailor’s mouth. This figure leaning on his elbow isn’t quite right but I admire Tom’s depiction of the standing sailor - the youthful face, strong hands and graceful long legs that show just how impressive those white bell bottoms can be on the right man.

-
My favourite Tom picture of sailors is also from the less explicit 60’s. There are no leathermen involved at all. Just sailors on board ship(52).

(52)

A sailor is being chastised for spilling coffee on his colleague’s white uniform. Though handsome and broad-shouldered he nevertheless is forced to his knees and subjugated, forced to display his shapely buttocks - to the amusement of the rest of the crew. His head is inches from the bully’s bulge but for me the erotic charge is this picture is the forced humiliation and the possibilities offered up by his sexy, unprotected bottom.

(53)

Tom produced a similar picture involving bikers about the same time and I have a similar high regard for this piece (53). This time the bikers muscular hairy body underlines the humiliation of his chastisement.

(54)

The attractiveness of sailors bottoms is illustrated in another Tom picture (54, from the Jungle Jack series) showing a shipwrecked sailor drifting ashore astride an oil drum. To a pedant like me the full dress whites are more incongruous than ever in this picture but the erotic effect is enchanting.

Continued here

Read this series from episode 1

Thursday, 1 January 2009

Mitchell's 'In Praise of Sailors' - 13

Tom of Finland included images of sailors in his pictures throughout his career but there are significant ‘clusters’ of work in the sixties and eighties. I have included a selection here. Sailors are usually presented as objects of admiration and desire with tight, white tunics and trousers showing off typically exaggerated masculine contours. The physical attributes are complemented by a relaxed masculine strength and confidence.
.

(48)
In the early sixties pictures Tom often shows leather men admiring sailors and flirting with them. Invariably the sailor is in control, as in the example here, (48) where a provocatively dressed, cruising leather man is chatted up in traditional heterosexual fashion by a rather laid back tar. The leather man’s unsubtle advertising is not dissimilar to the flamboyance on display in Art Bob’s ’Idols’. This self-feminisation highlights just how powerful the gay perception of masculinity in sailors was and how desirable they were.
.

(49)
In the seventies Tom’s sailors start to appear as sexually active participants in the 'Kake' series of orgies featuring an array of Village People stereotypes. They gradually transform into the stereotypical, lantern jawed and overly muscular Tom male. These pictures don’t work for me but every so often an admiring portrait reasserts Tom’s love for the uniform(49). Although this sailor here has removed his tunic Tom generally keeps them pretty much in full regalia which, attractive though it might be, screens off their sexuality. This is exactly what uniforms are supposed to do of course.
.

(50)

There is an interesting reversal of power about this time as the sailors start to become the hunted quarry (50) and are also seen chasing the leather men who are now the beacons of masculinity.

In the next installment I present my favourite sailor images by Tom

Continued here
Read this series from episode 1

Tuesday, 30 December 2008

Mitchell's - 'In Praise of Sailors' - 12

The pictures of MacLane and Art Bob depict the fascination with sailors in the 50’s.
In the first picture (44), MacLane presents the sailors' masculinity
by portraying them in poses which echo heroic Greek statues.

(44)

At first glance it’s a fairly bland and dated ‘pin up’ picture.
But look closer - the sailor’s expression and depiction of their clothing
with restrained but lovingly drawn bulges, bring the image to life in a quite startling way.

MacLane’s second picture here (45) is an informal visualisation of life on board
depicting bored, youthful sailors living together.

(45)

The uniform of the ’postman’ on the right is nicely drawn and even shows a little bulge,
but the depiction of most of the figures is not particularly erotic in style
- apart from the handsome foreground figure, whose nudity is heightened
by sweaty highlighting and just visible underwear
which is clearly not providing much modesty at the front.
The eye is drawn to this hunky young man
who is clearly thinking lustful thoughts about his girl back home.
This is unnoticed by his companions but we can secretly tap into his heightened sexual state.

*
MacLane’s subtlety was dictated by the laws of the time of course,
but Art Bob is more adventurous.
In Idols (46) his sailor is the object of desire for both a man and a woman.

(46)

Strangely enough the woman and the man both seem to be in a different class of sophistication and attractiveness compared with the sailor who apart from pert cheeks is rather frumpy looking. Perhaps Art Bob thought the uniform was all that was needed! The competition is fierce between the two coquettes. The woman even appears to have dropped a lace handkerchief as a ploy - although the physics of the situation suggest it was there before she arrived. No matter, the outcome is a foregone conclusion since the sailor is reading a male muscle magazine.
The secret language of gays triumphs over heterosexual womanly wiles!

(47)

The final picture is another Art Bob number (47). Another complex story is being told. Two sailors seem to be stranded in the desert with their kitbags and a cowboy is directing one of them to the nearest gas station - which is clearly not near! Quite why the middle sailor is so alarmed is unclear. Perhaps the long walk ahead or the camp attire of the cowboy, maybe he is conversant with the handkerchief code and doesn’t fancy being alone with him. The cowboy is holding something else in his hand which might explain more (the reins of his horse?) but I'm nott sure what it is. I love the depiction of the sailors in this picture - both the butch seated one and the boyish doll-like one on the left. This artist too shows his love of the sexiness of the sailors caps and trousers in his depiction of them.

Continued here

Read this series from episode 1

Monday, 29 December 2008

Mitchell's - In Praise of Sailors - 11

There is a considerable body of art with modern sailors as subjects. Back in the early 20th century it was common to use drawings and paintings to illustrate adverts and press articles and I’ve reproduced a small selection here.

The gunnery pictures were popular but it’s hard not to see homo-erotic overtones in the way the theme is presented.

Look at the juxtapositioning of the shell and the sailor peering through the gunsight.

The next article looks at gay art interpretations of 'sailordom'

Read this series from episode 1

Sunday, 28 December 2008

Mitchell's 'In Praise of Sailors' - 10

Dressing little boys as sailors was popular with the Victorians and inevitably, given the fascination with the image, the look finds it’s way into fashion wear every so often (39). The full blown look like this is probably too much like fancy dress for most lads
.

(39)

Even raunchy men dally with the iconography (40)
and this restrained use is more effective but not suitable as street wear!
.

(40)

The advertising media also draw on the imagery,
this example featuring the Ginch Gonch boys is rather nice (41).

(41)

The next episode will look at Sailors in Homoerotic Art

Read this series from episode 1

Friday, 26 December 2008

Mitchell's 'In Praise of Sailors' - 9

Erotic images featuring sailors were staple fare in the 50’s (35).
.

(35)

Near nudity was permitted.
These pictures are cute, but in a way they miss the point
and don‘t covey that essential earthy masculinity (36).
.

(36)

In the UK, the Royale Studio specialised in uniform pictures with S&M flavours exploiting the reputation of the service for harsh and cruel punishments which was probably undeserved (37).

(37)

The models in these pictures were supposedly real servicemen. The uniforms were sometimes worn in bizarre combinations but often used very effectively to display male characteristics -like chunky thighs!.

(38)

The sado-masochism overtones continue today (38) and I’m not complaining!

Continued
Read this series from episode 1