A-Z of Fetish Artists - Toby

I will tip my hat in passing to Toby whose portrayals of baby-faced men pre-date the arrival of the Japanese manga in the West. The example I have chosen, is unmistakeably an adult man with a nicely drawn physique somewhat in the style of Lüger. However, Toby's trademark iconography of youth – the mop of blond hair, snub nose and tomboyish patched knees – was usually assigned to more ambiguous bodies and I would not dream of publishing them or promoting the theme. I just lament for what might have been had his obvious talent been directed towards more mainstream interests. 

Toby's drawings were probably never widely acceptable in their own flower-power era and in recent years the sensitivity to this sort of art has increased considerably - although you would not think it from the flood of 'Daddy' material that has appeared of late. Whether you like it or not, in my view it's a foolish and provocative dalliance in the present climate.

A-Z of Fetish Artists - Titus

Titus produced art for magazines like 'Bound and Gagged' around the turn of the millennium. There's not an awful lot of his work around but the imagery in them is striking.

Titus – Dungeon Orgasm

This is one of his best, showing two men apparently trying to train a captive to give a Pavlovian response. He is being forced to induce his own orgasm by riding an anal plug, repeatedly rising up and down on his toes to stimulate his prostate. It would be quite a demanding, physical task at this height, but presumably the conditioning of the captive's libido lends excitement a hand. In Pavlov's classic experiment a dog was taught to salivate at the sound of a bell because it usually meant food was arriving and if you look closely this prisoner is drooling at the mouth as well as his tip. A nice touch. It's not clear what reward he's anticipating instead of food – perhaps his master's intimidating cock or simply being spared the whip. The use of different sized bells are a sophisticated elaboration of Pavlov's idea. I imagine the slave is meant to work harder and harder on his plug as the note of the bell rises in pitch culminating in ejaculation. It would make an entertaining video!

The other striking ingredient of this picture is the master's lackey, in charge of the bell section. He has the striking face of a matinee idol but is a slave himself, locked up in a chastity device of mediaeval proportions. Nevertheless he takes great pleasure in assisting at the humiliation of his fellow captive. Presumably he is not conditioned to respond to the bells himself, otherwise methinks that box would soon wipe the smile of his face. Perhaps he has his own particular musical stimulant!

Titus' drawing captures the predicament of the impaled captive but not quite his effort or the climactic drama of the moment. Compare this picture with Teddy's “Tyrant's Toy” from some years earlier and you'll see what I mean. It's a piece with a similar structure - enthroned master and lackey tormenting a bound slave - but the difference in energy levels and excitement is amazing.

There's actually a passing resemblance to the technical style of Sean in this picture but his earlier work is more naturalistic (see below).

Titus - The Chamber

An athlete in enforced training is temporarily freed from his chains to perform physical exercise pull-ups. His supervisor (fetchingly-dressed in short-sleeve shirt and split-side shorts) encourages him with tugs on the scrotum and secretly makes a video record of the humiliation. The relaxed stance of the supervisor is actually highly suggestive of another activity he could carry out with his right hand if he released the rope, it might make an even better picture of humiliation.

This is perhaps the most familiar work by this artist, but it's quite understated and I'm not sure why it seems to be quite so popular. In a way it's a modern, fetish variation of the classical tradition of artists painting themselves in the process of painting their subjects, Valazquez and other classical artists did this and Tom of Finland and Etienne amongst others picked up the artist and model device (without explicit self-portraiture) as a 'legitimate' way of showing a man undressed before another, with all the subtle undertones of direction and control involved (not so subtle in Titus case!). 

 Titus - Temptation

Once again this image features an observer enjoying, and excited by, the 'predicament' of a bound captive who cannot see him. The interesting angle of vision used here draws us in as well, as furtive voyeurs of both men. Once again it's understated , portrayed as a game (note the penknife stuck in the nearby post offering escape) and the captive is even fully clothed (possibly to comply with a related storyline). Watching men jerking off is an over-rated pastime in my book but I find the pose of the secret observer here extraordinarily erotic. Titus draws some interesting men but unfortunately he often seems to have difficulty attaching cocks to their bodies convincingly. As for the challenge of portraying trussed-up men lying on the floor, see my Tagame article.

Titus – Pillory Spanking

Nearly all of Titus' pictures feature captives being subjected to games and tests designed to humiliate them and this early one featuring a public, college-style hazing represents the most elementary form of this pastime. The humorous slant he adopts is realistic I suppose but tends to dilute the intensity of the fetish fantasy for me. This sort of 'lads together' subject matter reminds me of the work of 50's artists like Spartacus and the drawing style here is similar to his too, but at other times his work resembles the that of Kent (the non-fetish illustrator) and I've already mentioned Sean. I don't think you can pin Titus down.

As far as I know this artist is no longer active and I don't know of a website for him, look in art groups like GMBA (link in sidebar)

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A-Z of Fetish Artists - Thompson (and a mystery)

These fragments are all I have by this artist so I can't comment on his other work but this is a very sexy and tantalising sample featuring bondage and clothes ripping in a fanciful medical scenario. The frames have been badly cropped but I haven't attempted to tidy them up.

 Biceps in Boxes 4 (Nos 1-3 are missing)

It's always nice to see a muscular jock obeying the voice of authority despite his own doubts. I expect pictures 1-3 have been left out because they are fairly tame but I like to see a story unfold and find it quite frustrating when presenters insist on cutting direct to the chase. At least we get to see him undress.

 Biceps in Boxes 6 (No 5 missing)

The physiotherapist turns out to be quite an old man and his close attentions embarrass the athlete, but not enough for him to challenge his authority. It's a delicious power play scenario that gives hope to all those with less than god-like attractions. The interlinked arms here make me wonder what happened in picture 5, is he cuffed behind? However, the text does give some clue to what we missed in Nos 1-3. I think the two frames would probably work better if separated, but it's an interesting device.

  Biceps in Boxes 7

A bit of a leap of faith is required to believe this development, this jock really is compliant! I suppose the physio could have passed his equipment off as a back stretching device. The demands of accommodating comic speech bubbles sadly relegate the old pervert to the role of distant spectator. 

  Biceps in Boxes 8

From this direction the restraint arrangement seems even more improbable, but the appearance of a vicious-looking hook will cheer the hearts of fetish fans! The physio looks ever more sinister, the athlete ever more moist and succulent. There's just a suggestion that he finds his predicament a little bit exciting.

  Biceps in Boxes 9  

What else would you use a hook like that for? The sight of buttocks peeping out over the top of a low waistband is one of my favourite views. If the helpless jock was embarrassed before he now faces the prospect of his ass being exposed to the old man's lascivious view.

  Biceps in Boxes 10

Ripped underwear, yum. You can come again!

  Biceps in Boxes 11

The erotic pleasure trip is suddenly cut short by the artist, no missing pictures I'm afraid! Unsurprisingly the jock is eager to cover his modesty and get away, but we get a glimpse of his tackle. He is seemingly unstirred by his experience - where do you find such men? I'm not sure whether the rays emanating from his balls depict movement or perhaps a tingling sensation, maybe it's a case of blushing buttock.

 Biceps in Boxes 12

The closing dialogue's a bit odd but there's a nice beefcake study for the parting shot. The physio reflects on yet another triumph by age and experience over youth and enthusiasm.

Regular readers will know I'm a bit of a sleuth, tracking down artist identities and trying to solve mysteries but this one has me beat! I'd never heard of this artist until these pictures appeared on GMBA (current link in side bar) a little while ago. The set is incomplete and I've tracked it down to an identical posting on the Rainbow free site in 2003(!). This looks like a magazine comic strip so there must be more but despite numerous clues in the text I've not been able to discover any more about this artist or his work. Does anyone else have any leads?

For previous articles in this series click on the A-Z label below or search for your favourite artist

A-Z of Fetish Artists - 'The Overcoat'

The Overcoat

I'm not sure this artist regards himself as a fetish artist, his site at Deviant Art contains mainly vanilla stuff but I thought it was worth presenting this selection picked up via GMBA Group (current link in sidebar). 

The Overcoat – Blindfolded

This single picture earns The Overcoat his entry here, I love the dark, brooding atmosphere. The painting style is quite coarse particularly on the torso, but the amount of character packed into the captive's face is impressive, all the more so considering he's blindfolded so the eyes cannot be seen. The waist level cut-off leaves us guessing about his state of undress but the bold highlights on the right side of the body suggest a figure worthy of inspection.

 The Overcoat – Guide Me

The atmosphere of menacing gloom continues in this picture with clever use of an elevated viewpoint to embellish the pseudo-spiritual subject matter. Allusions to religion are a big turn off for me but it's easy to imagine a secular scenario. 

The simply-depicted face of the monk is striking for it's authentic expression of pious respect, but it's blankness creates a sense that this is a man who is lacking in human warmth and feelings, hence his reliance on a higher power. The crouching, naked penitent seems to have taken on the near-human form of a gargoyle-like beast, a tempting target for chastisement in conventional religious teaching. However, this real-life confrontation with the deformed and despised seems to have given the monk an unexpected dilemma of conscience.

The Overcoat – and a Happy New Year

I like the simplicity of this bondage image, the captive's arms are pulled back just enough to feel the restraint and reveals a body which is refreshingly real, with just a touch of muscle and hair. He's been given another characterful face and looks pretty apprehensive about the situation (threat of a haircut perhaps?). His lack of festive joy at being cast in the role of the 'gift-wrapped man' is an unusual take on the theme and gives the normally clichéd bow of red ribbon a whole new lease of life as a symbol of ownership.

'Overcoat' is a Finnish artist and I suppose the odd choice of name conceals a rather more complicated real one. These dark and brooding pictures certainly fit with our perceptions of the Scandinavian psyche but contain few clues to the artist's thoughts beyond the simple situation portrayed. The pictures in this selection appear to anticipate scenes of unpleasantness, but in other pictures by the artist, the captor is kissing his captive so we're not necessarily in heavy territory here. However, their muted eroticism and lack of explicitness encourages the viewer to imagine for himself. His skill with faces helps in making a connection with the individual portrayed and his helpless state.

See more of The Overcoat at Deviant Art,

if anyone knows where he posts more fetish-y stuff please let me know.
Update:- I have now stumbled across a second gallery for this artist at Deviant Art called 67percentobsession

For previous articles in this 'mitchmen' series click on the A-Z label below

A-Z of Fetish Artists - Tendoji

This is the only picture I have ever seen by this artist but it's something of a classic. The eroticism is beautifully understated and in it's day (1971), when tying men up with rope was just a routine way of inhibiting their heroics, the significance of the captive's dislodged shorts were probably lost on the average viewer - or perhaps seen as a reflection on the low class manners of the attacker.

Much of the impact of the picture comes from the scary suspension, whose threat is considerably amplified by the upward looking viewpoint and the soaring log-built frame on the right. The vulnerability of the captive is magnified by contrasting his near-nakedness with the over-dressed villain whose bizarre designer look gives a decidedly scary tweak to his manic, angry behaviour. In my article on Tagame I said that upside down images were hard for our brains to process but this effort works better than most, possibly because the youth's body isn't full of distracting detail.

This is a very successful picture built around the spectacular use of perspective, so thrilling in fact that you don't even notice that the villain doesn't fit into it technically. While the rest of the picture is looking up, we seem to be looking down on him and yet somehow the discrepancy doesn't jar, how clever is that? It's similar to the 'multi-image within a picture' effect I talked about with Tam, where the brain seems to be able to blend/cut incompatible images together, almost creating an extra dimension.

The only reference I can find for this artist is a citation in Tagame's Gay Erotic Art in Japan Vol 2

For previous articles in this 'mitchmen' series click on the A-Z label below

A-Z of Fetish Artists - Teddy of Paris

This artist was one of those blazing stars who flare brightly but briefly and then disappear back to their day jobs having left behind a priceless collection of of classic images which leave you longing for more.

Teddy of Paris 1 Tyrant's Toy

It's the captive's awkward, extended, angular pose that makes this picture so striking. The simple tethering of legs, arms and dick renders him totally helpless. He cannot rise or take up any normal body position and it would be a nasty torture in it's own right over any extended period of time. His anguished expression displays not just the pain of the whip and his bondage but a dog-like deference towards his master, a wariness of how much longer this will continue - and what may be demanded of him next.

You can see the influence of 'the Hun' in Teddy's portrayal of The Tyrant and maybe Tom of Finland in the crazed whip man. They are pretty much stock characters, but the 'Toy', who is a markedly handsome man with a slender body and long muscular legs is entirely Teddy's own creation. He's not stereotypical dungeon fodder but instead looks like a model, a sporting hero, the man who has everything – or used to. His youthful beauty makes the level of violence used against him (implied by the network of whip marks all over his body) seem all the more destructive. The absurdly exaggerated sexual excitement of all concerned lightens the atmosphere and sanitises the scene to a degree. But, unlike Tam's explorations of pain and sexual arousal, there's no suggestion of physical intimacy here.

Teddy's best pictures have a powerful a sense of unrestrained energy, suggesting an emotional commitment to the subject matter, which is also reflected in his use of a sophisticated and time consuming pointillist technique. Sadly the scan has degraded the detail, obscuring the artist's skill.

Teddy of Paris 2 – Hungry for Pain

This image has not the same physical energy, but there's still a powerful intensity about the portrayal of a fearful, cringing prisoner confronted by a sexual beast. Interestingly, there are sketches of bondage positions lying on the floor suggesting the artist is representing himself and expressing some very personal feelings here, including presumably the words of the title incorporated into the floor. Once again, the technique and astonishing level of erotically-focussed detail (the seams of the jeans, the hairy ass) demonstrate a deep personal interest.

Teddy of Paris 3 – Kitchen Scene

(from The Bridegroom's Cherry)

A good deal of Teddy's reputation comes from the illustrations he did for the story of 'The Bridegroom's Cherry'. These pictures feature men with manic eyes, long legs and enormous cocks having wild, rough sex. The bridegroom of the title (seen here tied to the kitchen table) becomes the sexual victim of a gang who raid his flat and stay to play.

This imagery is quite adventurous for it's time (1990's) with fisting and electro-torture and the energy which seethes through this picture gives an intimidating impression of how it feels to experience those two extreme activities. Many artists' pictures looked artificially posed but Teddy's couple are seen in the middle of unstable, tumbling, orifice stretching contortions. When his men get going they do it hard and energetically and knowing this adds a hidden dimension of spice and danger to the less rowdy images, like Hungry for Pain above.

Teddy of Paris 4 – Hospital Scene

(from The Bridegroom's Cherry)

The hapless Bridegroom (this time lying dazed on the Hospital trolley) seems perpetually bewildered as he is by turns forced, drugged ,cajoled and tricked into man-sex with all manner of opportunist predators – in this case the Hospital intern who is supposed to be treating him for injuries received from his attackers (it turns out that the orderly enjoying the scene is actually one of the gang himself).

The portrayal of the Bridegroom in these pictures is like the victim in 'Tyrants Toy'. They are both attractive and pretty normal-looking men (in stark contrast to their assailants). This one is a construction worker who is so butch he wears a jockstrap instead of underwear. Both are made to submit to stronger (or more devious) men. Both are propelled along a rocky road discovering an ability to enjoy man-sex and abusive domination.

Some of the other pictures in this series, geared to the storyline, lack the intensity of these two. Teddy has not used his pointillist technique either, possibly reflecting the fact that it's a commission not a personal project. It looks as if the originals are painted with watercolours or inkwash and available scans of these pictures are poor, suffering from excess of contrast giving them an eerie, misty quality.

The images for this tale circulate without any storyline, but I recently discovered a text for the story at 'Daddy's Here' (link below). It's not great literature (all fetid armpits and globular cheeks, quote:- “the sound of slurpings and slobberings and slaverings bounced off the walls of the room”). Despite this it does provide a narrative that plausibly links most of the images. However this text implies a different picture sequence to those of at least 4 sets circulating on the internet (including Daddies own!) Interestingly, while there is a scene in this text where the groom is tied to the kitchen table, it doesn't feature electro torture or fisting, but shaving and body painting instead. Watered down for publication?

 Teddy of Paris 5 – Kiwi at the Stake

The third string to Teddy's bow was his series of cartoons about 'Kiwi', a young man who is unambiguously gay but always manages to get himself into embarrassing and painful scrapes. There must have been many episodes produced but they are not easy to track down. These samples are taken from 'Kiwi hits the Screen' where the young man is hired for an acting job but goes to the wrong studio. He ends up starring in an advert extolling the virtues of 'Securit' restraint ropes in various situations – all of which call for Kiwi to be tied up and abused, but neither he nor the reader knows what is really going on until the final frame. This is one of the more spectacular endorsement scenarios and allows Teddy to show his skill with light and flame effects (it compares well with previous conflagrations from Saj, Sean and Sergey). Kiwi's terrified eyes, comic though they are, make the image rather special for those with sadistic leanings.

Teddy of Paris 6 – Kiwi crated up

It looks as though Teddy designed this tasty dish to be served with or without the added salt of sadism round the edges, to suit the publisher's requirements. Kiwi's caged contortions certainly seem erotic enough to sell the ubiquitous ropes on their own. Teddy maintains the boy's naïve compliance - and his mammoth erection – throughout his multi-faceted ordeal. The jaw distended by the sheer size of the invading cock features in other Teddy images.

Virtually every frame of this comic strip contains a fresh idea and nearly every one is a little gem capable of standing up as a picture on it's own - it's a classic example of the effort and quality Teddy put into his work for us to enjoy, although it leaves you yearning for more developed versions.

Teddy of Paris 7 – Let's Have Fun

Just to show Teddy's romantic side. This is not really a fetish picture but there's a suggestion of dangerous sex and a good deal of erotic tension in this scene of seduction. The handsome and confident-looking (cocky even?) adonis seems to revel in the attention he's getting. Teddy captures the amazing magnetism that well-worn jeans have for men's eyes - and for the hands of the bold

(and who hasn't wanted to do just this to such a man?) .

The handkerchief proclaims the groper to be a bottom or receiver, but he's no wimp and seems to have this situation well in hand. Do the keys indicate he's ready to go, or something more symbolic when combined with that approach from behind? (See here for clarification!) The colour of his preference hanky remains tantalisingly unknown to us, but it's dark (and there appears to be a hidden symbol of some kind). In any event his sly, confident air suggests that our hero may be in for more than he expected. 

Teddy of Paris - Barracks Initiation

This picture is something of a tour de force and must have been a labour of love, as the annotation suggests. It's a sort of S&M equivalent of Tom of Finland's giant orgy scenes. There are 4-5 areas of detail within the composition which are beautifully done (I love the man standing on the left margin, cans in hand). Visually, the picture is dominated by the two central figures and the backbone of the composition – a narrowing corridor receding to the top right corner – gets a bit lost in the detail (in this scan at least). However, it's a fascinating scene, with terrified, new recruits being brought down distant steps from the bright world outside, through a corridor of watching, jeering, leering men into a dark, manic arena, there to be subjected to arbitrary punishment and humiliation.

You can tell from the sheer work that has gone into this picture and from the facial expressions and abuses depicted in it that Teddy has expressed some deep, inner feelings here which were important to him and it deserves to be taken seriously by us. Psycho-analysts relate tunnel imagery to the memory of being born and in a sense that is what is happening here, the birth of innocents into a terrifying world of undeserved punishment and brutally enforced conformity. The experience of growing up gay? Perhaps. Significantly it's from light into darkness, the reverse of normal birth.

However you view this image, that single, isolated, fearful face, almost lost in the background, turns it from an atmospheric, spanking romp into a seriously threatening and erotic S&M classic. You might ponder why fear is a recurring theme in Teddy's paintings (see 1,2 and 5 above) and why it is associated with sexual excitement - and why that connects to us so powerfully.

It seems that Teddy was self-taught but his technical skills are of a very high order. His uproarious expressions of energetic sex and devilish punishments mark him apart from other S&M artists. It's a shame it came to an end so quickly.

Teddy was resident at a site called Curious Yellow in the 90's, but it seems to have gone now. His pictures are not hard to find on the net, there's a good selection and a text for 'Bridegroom's Cherry' at Daddy's Here

Note: Since I published this article, Teddy has been in touch with me and provided a link to his flickr page. He's now (Oct 2021) planning a Patreon page. You can see the correspondence in the comments section below.

 

For previous articles in this 'mitchmen' series click on the A-Z label below

The mystery of 'Madison' resolved

Tattoo Parlour

 

I previously published this image in the A-Z under letter 'M' believing it to be 

attributed to an artist named 'Madison'. I said about it then:-

"It has been around a long time but surfaces regularly in fetish groups. It's actually a rather good drawing but the manic eyes of the captive grab all the attention and make it appear humorous but also rather trivial. However, on closer examination almost every aspect of this picture shouts class, the depiction of the man's slender physique and the twining ropes is exceedingly erotic and the detailing of his penis and the tattooist's hands and equipment are superb, never mind the fainter tattoo designs on the wall behind. The drawing of the head lacks the same finesse - it actually bears a passing resemblance to Sean's style but that comparison's not meant to be derogatory to either artist!"

I have now acquired a higher resolution image (above) and examination of the rose tattoo in the background immediately reveals Sean's usual signature with E and N combined. It's actually visible in my original post as well, I don't know how I missed it! The subject matter is Sean's bag as well. Anyway, I think I say safely say that this picture 'Tattoo Parlour' is by Sean. I have removed it from the original post.

You can find my A-Z article on Sean here