Vintage Bondage - Mark Nixon

Mark Nixon (by WPG)

This image of Mark Nixon by WPG has many of the bondage shortcomings I mentioned in my last post  - loose ropes which are not really tied and a fairly relaxed model - but it has it's compensations.

The hands over head and feet together pose really shows off the model's lean physique and long, long legs.  This also constitutes a seriously vulnerable position when in bondage, particularly when coupled with his near nudity and the open air setting. It closely resembles the classical images of St Sebastian and hints of serious danger to that beautiful body.

 

.......but who wouldn't want to tie up such a cute young man?

Two more pictures from the same set which are rather less exciting but I like the hands behind pose on the right. The raised leg trick does nothing for the fetish atmosphere but it does allow his total nudity and you can imagine tying his ankles together yourself. The model's slightly worried look in this picture adds greatly to it's impact. You might think he's seen an archer approaching, but more probably he's concerned about losing his posing pouch! The controversial garment in these pictures is slightly better fitting than those in the last post and fits into the pseudo-classical theme more naturally than the motorcycle scenario seen there.

Mark Nixon caught in the Net

 

 This rear view is another classic male nude pose and shows Mark's well developed upper torso to good effect, the glimpse of his bottom cleavage presumably being acceptable. The net is another regular beefcake accessory, suggestive of fishermen and gladiators ensnaring their quarry. Draping it over the model's lower body creates something of a merman effect for classicists - and a suggestion of captivity for those with baser interests.

 

Mark Nixon Repentant

A powerful study of subservience with a hint of  bondage, but not a rope in sight.

The 60's prudes would find it hard to criticise this image.

This model was blessed with an understated muscularity and slender proportions

 which are a good match for his boyish face.

WPG stands for Western Photography Guild. 

Like AMG (Athletic Model Guild) they adopted the Medieval term for a skilled trade association in order to impart respectability to their brand. Sunny outdoor images were WPG's speciality and this lighting (with the help of some oil) made the most of the model's muscularity and suggested health and vitality. They stuck quite closely to semi-classical studies but there's a stirring undercurrent of eroticism that is pleasurable but also frustrating, since it always goes unfulfilled (although you will find naked, frontal images of this model elsewhere if you search). The much reviled posing pouch, symbolically emphasising what it conceals, is actually a key ingredient in creating this feeling of sexual anticipation. WPG's 'duos' showing two gleaming male bodies intertwined in various pseudo-wrestling positions demonstrate an amazing capacity to suggest sweaty, erotic struggle while remaining strictly decent. This conservative approach no doubt allowed them to recruit body-builders who would not have touched more smutty stuff.

Vintage Bondage - Leonard Chambers

This post was updated in Dec 2023 with additional images including bondage images 3 and 4

1

Vintage bondage imagery is usually pretty disappointing with ropes that usually aren't tied at all, but just wound round limbs or simply draped, and models who look as if they are suffering no inconvenience at all. These pictures of Leonard Chambers in a hogtie by AMG are a cut above that. The ropes are still loose but it's a genuine restraint position and Chambers muscular body reflects that stress, particularly in the image above.

2

The draped podium on which Chambers is balanced is a typical device from 60's beefcake imagery. The model would normally stand or sit on it, imitating a classical statue. This flavour of artiness was supposed to deflect accusations of smut. With the model in bondage it conjures up more adventurous associations with ancient, ritual sacrifice. This probably seems more eyebrow-raising to us now than it did then - that was the era of Tarzan, Lost Worlds and 'She', when scantily clad movie heroes routinely faced such bondage and unpleasantness on their way to ultimate victory. 

3

This example from the set (added in Dec 2023) is the clearest I have found so far and gives a great view of Chamber's face and arm musculature. To modern eyes this arrangement conjures up a fantasy of the model as a trophy capture, displayed for sale or awaiting some other fate, probably non-terminal, but possibly quite taxing. The slight overhang of his body at each end provides an extra element of discomfort.

4

This fuzzy image was a thumbnail used to advertise the set in magazine ads. The white restraint cord is barely visible around Chambers wrist, but the background pattern confirms it's connection with the images above.

In his bondage pictures above Chambers has the look of a typical 50/60's movie hero but here on the beach he's more the fun-loving boy next door. In the 50's the motorcycle was every young man's passport to freedom, since few could afford a car. It was an accessory that added to his desirability. 

I'm not one of those who decry the posing pouch/G-string but would admit that this picture probably gives ammunition to the detractors. This version of the garment seems to be simultaneously revealing and baggy - or is it just badly padded? 

 This pose is not exactly modest but showcases the model's muscularity - and that dubious pouch.

I wonder if the bottle is used for Eau de Toilet!

This image shows restraint of a different kind. Images like this regularly appear up to the present day. It encapsulates a  romantic yearning to totally possess a beloved - or if you think about the genie in the bottle, the desire to control and contain a more powerful being. Both are universal and timeless desires and surely are the part of the essence of the bondage fetish. 

If you like your men bottled, this might appeal even more, the flask shape being more constraining and vaguely phallic. I imagine the technique needed to produce this image in 1950 was less straight-forward than it would be today. They have even managed to conjure the effect of seeing the model through slightly clouded glass.

There are lots of images of Leonard Chambers on the net, use a search engine to find him with 'vintage model' or similar if necessary. There's an interesting story about his tragic death at Vintage Male

Click on the labels below for other vintage bondage.

Channing Tatum - A wrestler controlled in 'Foxcatcher'

 

Channing Tatum in the Wrestling Arena

 

Those of you who enjoy my stories of hunky male stereotypes being controlled and dominated might enjoy watching the film 'Foxcatcher' which I discovered this week. A fleshy Channing Tatum plays a Gold Medal winning, Olympic amateur wrestler (above). His character is one of the US team taken under the wing of a wealthy sponsor, John Du Pont, who wants to help them win more medals for the US. As part of the deal they have to live and train in the grounds of his mansion.

Channing Oiled up

Du Pont takes a particular interest in Channing' s character, showering him with attention, using his image to promote the venture (above) and parading him to conventions to talk about it.

It soon becomes apparent that Du Pont is delusional about his abilities as a wrestling coach but the wrestling establishment is enthusiastic about the live-in workcamp arrangement and the hefty financial sponsorship he provides.

Channing in the back seat

There's a suggestion that Du Pont's interests in his sportsmen are homosexual as he repeatedly contrives encounters where Channing is partly undressed - like personally oiling him up for the photoshoot or visiting his cabin to confer on training late at night.

Channing is intimidated by the man's confidence and wealth and flattered by the attention he is getting. Anxious not to rock the boat, he accepts the offer of friendship and gradually falls under Du Pont's spell.  His increasing hero-worship and subservience also contributes to that 'is-it-gay?' theme but it's just a hint. There's no confirmation of a sexual relationship but he ends up performing personal, menial tasks for his mentor (above). 

Channing hammered in the Ring

 

Gradually Channing's training suffers and his performance in the ring deteriorates (above), he fails to win a second gold medal and retires to a lesser existence as a coach and Pro-wrestler (below)

.

Channing stripped for action

The gay angle has caused something of a spat with the author of the story, Mark Schultz, whose own real life story the film is based on. He denies having any homosexual relationship with Du Pont but this outrage seems to have been triggered mainly by the predictable insinuations of the media following release of the film. Prior to that he seems to have found the manipulations and closeness shown in the film and Channing's moody and slightly dense portrayal as acceptable. 

 

Channing leaves Camp

 

It's rather sad that Schultz believes it matters to anyone important whether he was seduced or not, or that it's a matter of shame. He certainly would not be the first young man to experiment or to fall under the control of power and wealth. Actually the film is harder on his character than his sexuality. It suggests that he was groomed and no more. He is humiliated but proudly walks away from it all at the end, explaining "You know why I can't stay". But sadly his sporting career is already in ruins. 

There's a lot more to the film than this, which I won't give away, but just as a study in mitchmen-esque grooming and control of a strong and attractive man it makes fascinating (and disturbing) viewing.

Foxcatcher produced by Annapurna Pictures , Likely Story, Media Rights Capital

Mitch-Man under Pressure

Mitchell - Bondage Furniture No 7 (The Surfboard)

I drew this picture shortly after posting my A-Z article on 'The Amir' in 2008 and have just noticed it's resemblence to a bondage arrangement used by that artist there 

(and also reproduced in my most recent post about him). 

It is an interesting example of how we subconsciously absorb influences, but I'm happy to acknowledge it. The Amir went a lot further than me in promoting the captive's discomfort. I left my man merely anticipating developments. These are unseen by us, but they do seem to be worrying ones for him!

This image is No 7 from my Bondage Furniture series,
which can be seen in full at the Yahoo! Group. (Link in sidebar).

There's another from the series in this blog post:- Bondage Furniture No 1 

No 6 is posted in the Blog Gallery
along with a selection of other pictures by me (click on image in sidebar)

See other Mitchell pictures posted on this blog by clicking on the 'mitchpix' label below

A-Z article updated - The Amir

The Amir - In Punishment

An infernal machine worthy of Franco!

I just updated my A-Z article on the artist 'The Amir', 

(click on name for link)

I'm still looking for a web link for his work - any offers?.

Tom's Bar Predators - a new addition

Tom of Finland - Sketch of Bar Scene

 

Whilst researching my recent series of articles on Tom of Finland, I came across this sketch and it reminded me of his well known Bar Predators series, discussed here in 2012. It was the figure on the right that triggered this thought, his jaunty cap and upturned collar is very much in the same mould as that group (see below). The bar itself (with the barman in a cameo role) and the figure bent over it also fit the original scenario quite neatly.

 

On closer inspection I also thought I could see a chain on the same biker's left shoulder, but that may be wishful thinking. The most compelling evidence though must be the tear in his T-shirt revealing his right nipple (see above and below). The other biker looks as though he has a beard in the new scene, which would be wrong, but it's possible this is just evidence of a correction of the jaw line, beards are fairly rare in Tom's work (more on Tom's Beards).
.

 
Tom - Bar Predators 1

If my reasoning is correct (and I make no claims to 'discovering' this picture) it resurrects the argument as to why Tom never finished this widely admired series. It's not hard to imagine why this particular picture didn't go any further, there's something of a hole in the middle of the composition although this could probably be fixed - by lowering the viewpoint or bringing the cop in closer for example. The cop's pose and garb shown here feature in many of Tom's images and it's interesting that this is the only part of the sketch which is anything like complete, illustrating Tom's obsession with it. For my money the bikers are much more interesting, but that's just my obsession!

You can see the extended series in it's entirety 
at the revised version of my original Bar Predators article.

A Space Cadet is Chastised

Space Cadet Chastised by Mitchell Gay Art

In a far distant Galaxy that time had forgotten, 

a Space Cadet from the visiting Starship 'Mantopia'

 is arrested  by the locals for not concealing his offensive hair.

He is sentenced to 5,000 pulses of Laser Tit Augmentation Torture.

The rest of the crew (all brunettes) look on in envy. 

I rarely do Spacemen in my art, but there's another example in this blog - The Astronaut

which uses similar designs.

Click on the 'mitchpix' label below for more of Mitchell's artwork