Pick Up Your Bed

Mark Tsarevsky - 'Pick up your bed' by David Vance

David Vance conjures up the impression of a nomad.

Minimal possesions, have bed will travel.

His saucy, sagging pants cock a snook at conventional souls.

Judging by his physique though, he's not destitute

and can still afford his gym fees.

Mark Tsarevsky by David Vance

Corner Time

'Bobby' by Richard Laeton

A study of a pensive man with an exceptionally shapely body.

Richard Laeton employs colours freely using exuberant brushwork.

He's caught the man's body highlights and shadowing nicely here.

Not so sure about the background though - is that a fire in the corner?

Visit Richard Laeton's website

Pants-Dropper

Another example of clothing flattering a model's body shape.

The V-shape of the braces artfully echoes the natural taper of the torso. 

Their taut line emphasises the undulations of musculature,

detouring around the mounds or jumping across the canyons.

With a slightly naughty point of convergence

But braces are not meant to be in contact with skin.

It's slightly shocking and dissolute combination

Implying undress, yet emphasising decency. 

I don't know the model or photographer yet.

Shirt-Lifter

Alex Geerman posing in a T-shirt in a very unconventional way. 

Perhaps it's an ad campaign for chest aftershave,

But it's a striking and unexpectedly sensual image.

I haven't ID'd the photographer yet.

Summer in Paradise

JuiceJ - title unknown

It's that time of year when men undress on beaches.

Not usually quite like this though. 

The high waisted underwear suggests a man of some modesty

I don't know who JuiceJ is, this image looks like it has photographic origins.
See comments below for more identification

The Making of a Man

This blog is dedicated to male beauty and Aaron Cal is a worthy representative.

He reminds us that hard work is needed to make the most of what nature gifted to us.

I'd follow a man like this anywhere!

Summer in the City

Reyes MA - New Yorker (Up On A Roof)

This image with it's acid-bright colours seems to speak of Summer, long and hot

the swirly sky reads like an invocation of heatwave conditions,

the subject's shiny face and clinging, summery attire likewise.

The leaves on the ground though are a augury of Autumn

 and thoughts of the future seems to be reflected in his serious expression

and that typically masculine, crouching pose, denoting a pause in activity.

The man portrayed here is strikingly muscular, his arms and neck convey that, 

even without the curious, explicit outlines showing through his T-shirt.

These seem to be another signifier of the summer heat 

supplementing the fleshy tones which also show through the material

at places where it stretches across perspiring, mounded muscle. 

Seemingly sketchy and naive at first sight, there's some clever observation here

I can't find a website for Miguel Angel Reyes

 but you'll find lots about him and sample images if you search on-line
There's a selection at the Homoerotic Art Museum

Summer is coming (again)

If this picture of Allen Clippinger strolling on the beach with a parasol seems familiar to you, 

click on this reminder and you'll know why. 

Hong Tao's recreation of the subject copies the photograph fairly closely, but he seems to have swapped the hint of boyish mischief seen here in the model's face for a more serious and sensitive demeanour. He focuses our attention on the model's character (and subtly changes our perceptions of it) by removing the distracting background of sea and beach, with all it's associations with summer, play and fun. Comparing the two pictures gives a rather good illustration of how we are subconsciously influenced by what appears to be minor detail.

The disappearance of the sporty numbers on the swimming trunks is also part of that transformation though I must say I like to see numbers on a man, it suggests he's got some energy and offers the faint chance that he might be capable of submitting to discipline. 

When I first saw Hong Tao's picture I was struck by the apparent flimsiness and loose fit of the model's shorts which gave it a slightly erotic flavour. You can almost see the same effect in the original photograph but it's clear here that it's created by shadowing and the dishevelling effect of actually getting them wet in the sea (God forbid!). The suggestive dark shadowing just above the waistline in Tao's picture is however, pure artistic licence (or should I say licentiousness!).

Mermen resurface

Merman by Know-Kname

I've featured other merman imaginings here (see label below) but this one breaks the mould a bit with his 'regular guy' look and facial hair. Know Kname gets the sense of swimming movement quite well. He avoids the thorny issues of respiration and reproductive functions by clever angling and basically not showing anything.

See more of his work at Know-Kname's gallery at Deviant Art

(but you'll have to hunt out pieces anything like this)

Adrift

Vern Dufford - Adrift

This is as good an invocation of loneliness and sadness you are ever likely to find and the nudity of the sailor implies it has sexual origins. With the boat still under full sail it's clearly him who's adrift, or contemplating it by parting company with the vessel. His outspread arms are suggestive of crucifixion images and the persecution associations that go with it.

The sober colouring is beautifully balanced, a grey, threatening sea and brown boat. A glimpse of yellow, sunset sky adds to the gloomy atmosphere but casts a warm glow over the sailor's muscular body injecting a note of optimism, a hint of inner strength.

This artist has a range of styles (just google his name to see) but has produced a number of images on this particular theme (and similar invocations of male alone-ness) in simple, sombre-toned compositions that seem to hark back to the 30's

There's a good collection here

Paisley Pants

I'm developing a fascination with patterned underwear for men

and the way it enhances maleness, contrary to the accepted view that plain is best

These ones, nicely filled out by the chunky Arad Winwood have a low waist and high, square cut legs that produce pleasing proportions. The effect of skimpiness is increased by the deep and boldly coloured waistband, which reduces the patterned area by almost one third.

That chunky waistband is an unmistakably male element. It counterbalances the suggestion of flimsiness and feminine fuss in the paisley-style pattern, but without quite removing it, leaving behind a tantalising ambiguity.

If there were room for doubt with this model, the body-hugging fabric highlights his primary male attribute and the pattern itself accentuates it, bracketing his pouch with mirror-image, rounded shapes that give it an extra, almost explicit visual dimension. The result is daring and slightly humorous but the precise balance and matching of the left and right halves of the garment that achieves this effect is a mark of true quality and attention to detail in the making of it.

Click on the patterned-briefs label below to see other examples

Credits:- Underpants by Jor , Photography by Armando Adajar

It must be Winter

Caylan Hughes

Winter has it's compensations - the fun of Christmas, the beauty of frost and snow, skiing the slopes if you are a sporty type, but from a man spotting point of view it's hopeless - it's cover up time. 

The caption seems a little belated but Caylan Hughes here defies the weather with a bizarre pair of furry shoulder pads being his only protection from the elements. Of course, in fantasy realms like this it tends to be winter all year round so you have to take advantage of any break in the weather. The image epitomises manly hunkage and Caylan's carefully crafted, hairy highlights are perfect for it.

image: Furious Fotog