Since adolescence I have been fascinated by the quiescence of men in photographs.
During my liberal undergraduate education in the mid 1970’s, I shot
my first male nude pictures. Since those formative years, my passion for this
subject has grown fostered by completing continuing studies in photography
at the Ringling School of Art and Design with honors.
My photographs are powerful images capturing the male physique with a formalist
appreciation for muscular sculptural magnificence. I use this visual power
to instill intrinsic value in my male nudes. The intimate relationship between
the viewer and the men in my pictures is illuminated through the medium of
silver gelatin photography. The medium fosters purity stripped of distraction.
It allows the spectator to gaze upon the piece, appreciating value, shadow,
and light in an interpretively superior manner.
Photography permits me to seek the moment in time where the mood of the man
in the image is frozen for my esthetic examination. I endeavor to capture
the elemental nature of each individual, his might, his essence, and his uniqueness.
Whether the image is classically reminiscent of another era or brashly modern
in execution, I want the viewer to gain entry into what lies behind the eyes
of the man. While displaying the virility of each man’s form, musculature,
and attitude, their sole intelligence is uncovered.
I continue to define my subjects, focusing primarily, but not exclusively,
on men of African origins. My ongoing challenge is to capture a male nude
in a fashion that is not objectified. While negating a homogenized characterization,
a gestural sense of composition shows men of color to be whole people, complex,
masculine, able, and contemporary. In some instances, social symbolism and
visual commentary act as an adjunct to the men in my images. The portraits
often speak louder than mere beauty. My work addresses present day issues
from a variety of directions. Whether I show the purity of nudity, the union
of man and nature, or point up dogmatic elements of society, the man remains
the central focus of a picture where less is more.
My hope is that my work can expose the vitality of all men, regardless of
race, without fear of social stigma or prejudice. I want my audience to feel
the presence of these individuals in an open way, without fear, freeing the
viewer to appreciate that, which simply makes a man a man.
