George Platt Lynes: The Male Nudes

Fantastic work, great photography. Helped me in my studio work. I did a nude calendar shoot for a local football team and was able to use it as a reference for poses.

That's amazing!!!

A great book that explains how and why George Platt Lynes was inspired by such subject matter. The book has images that I hadn't seen before with historical content. A title that should be in everyone's library who enjoy classical and dramatic compositions of nudes.

George Platt Lynes, who died at the relatively young age of 48 of cancer in 1955, was one of the pre-eminent photographers of the twentieth century, He specialised in elegant black and white portraits of celebrities, fashion, Balanchine's ballet dancers, and the male nude. Because of the prevailing homophobia of his times, the photos of the male nudes had, for the most part, to be kept within a circle of discerning friends. They were his passion, however, and throughout his life he photographed many young men, mostly in his studio, but also in domestic settings, developing a style which is now instantly recognisable. The book opens with a succinct and clear biography of the author's life, written by Steven Haas, which sets not just his work in context but many of the nudes in a personal context too - some were friends, some were lovers, some just turned up on his doorstep.For nine years Platt Lynes lived with, and was deeply in love with, Monroe Wheeler who was living with Glenway Wescott, the novelist (causing Westcott much unhappiness at being excluded from his partner's bed); but as he grew older, moving mostly between Paris and New York, working from many different studios and living in many different apartments, he was never short of handsome young assistants, many of whom became his lovers. It wasn't a gilded life - he had to work hard to achieve the success he did and he was often very short of money - but he lived a life of integrity, in which friendship, love and sex was highly valued.Towards the end of his shortened career, his work became less fashionable. Nearing death, he became concerned about his legacy; he left thousands of negatives to the Kinsey Institute for safe keeping, fearful that the homophobia of the times might prompt their destruction. This book contains about 200 of these photographs (one of several recent books showcasing various aspects of the photographer's work). The publishers have done him credit: it's a beautifully produced large-format book that uses quality paper and great design. It should appeal equally to lovers of the male nude and to those interested in the history of twentieth century photography. It also helps to fill out the fascinating story of the Westcott-Monroe-Platt Lynes trio which has been given much fuller treatment in 'When We Were Three'.As to the nudes themselves, they are almost all of white young men, not always chosen for their looks and not professional models, who are caught in a variety of unaroused (mostly) poses that speak of thoughtfulness, reflection, poise and a quiet beauty. He seems more interested in capturing tenderness than eroticism, yet at the same time his trade-mark lighting techniques give his young men a sculptural quality. The book conjures a vision of young men adrift in a masculine world where women hardly get a look in, a world of youth and quiet beauty.