Thursday, August 27, 2009

She Shoots Men

Since 1976, as a fine-art photographer, my specialization is exploring different aspects of erotica, sexuality and gender. I am interested in photographing subject matter that offers many challenges, obstacles and difficulties dealing with the pathology of our times with references to sociology. All series are photographed for two years or more and all subsequent series evolve from the previous one.
Photographing environmental "Naked Men" in 1976 led to documenting "Male Burlesk" in 1981 which led to documenting NYC's Times Square's "Live Sex Shows" in the mid-80's. Photographing performers from the adult x-rated movie industry in 1985 for my "Porn Stars" series enabled me to explore the male gender embracing their female persona thru the 1990's for my transsexual series. This series resulted in a New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowship in 1987, along with an Artist Grant from Artist Space, NYC in 1989. Edition Stemmle published my solo monograph, "Male-to-Female (La Cage Aux Folles)" in 1995, featuring nudes of male-to-female transsexuals and triptychs of drag queens and transvestites.
Photographing the female gender embracing their male persona in the late 1990's of female-to-male transsexuals, male impersonators, drag kings and androgyny challenges the social construction of gender. My lifetime mission and on-going series of photographing male nudes, "She Shoots Men" is motivated by my desire to transform the imbalance that still exists with the pervasiveness of the double-standard in nude photography.

See also my 2nd blog - http://www.malesightings.blogspot.com/


In 1976, I began photographing male nudes in their home environments or outdoors in various locations. Using a 35mm camera and b/w film with a 50mm lens was my choice of equipment. Keeping it simple, I preferred available light or using a light when necessary. Even though I can recall each photo shoot for every subject that I have photographed, I decided to keep a journal for each of my male nude subjects, beginning on October 1, 1993.
This is where I shall start with my scenarios on shooting male nudes. Some are very brief, some are detailed and some are very vague. My website is http://www.sheshootsmen.com/

10/01/93 - I am in the downtown, shabby hotel on West 27th St. with Benjamin who was being a pain in the butt and coming on to me, but I ignored his comments, while photographing him. This was bothersome to me, since I spoke to him on the phone, prior to the shoot that it is strictly me, photographing him and nothing else. He behaved himself while I finished the shoot. He contacted me again and said that he wanted to be photographed with a dominatrix or with a transsexual. I said that I would do the shoot, but that he had to find the person to be photographed with.

10/30/93 - Just came back from photographing Tom, a grad student at Columbia University. He asked if he could get an erection, which I said was fine, but he had to do by himself. I photographed myself with him, my hand near his penis, which started a series, within this series, called "Me and Men". He eventually ejaculated. While packing up my camera equipment, he asked if I would photograph him again, when he contacts me.

11/06/93 - Went to photograph John, age 44 who lives on Carmine St. in the West Village, NYC.
He wanted references on me and wanted to know that I was a competent photographer to do his nude photos. He was a gentlemen and respected my professionalism. He asked me to take photos of his soft penis and his erection, but couldn't get his penis fully erect. He mentioned that while he was masturbating, he was intellectualizing the whole experience and enjoyed it, since he was never photographed by a female before. Being a nudist and frequenting a nudist camp in Pennsylvania, he mentioned he liked being nude in front of people, but felt that his body language was always stiff and it was stiff while I was photographing him. He said that he saved my telephone message on his answering machine and played it back to me, which he said revealed a personality with feelings. A graduate of City College with studies in match and psychology, I found him analyzing my approach when I called him, which he found interesting.
Took me for coffee and then walked me to the Christopher St. subway station for my train, he told me I was gorgeous. Nice compliment, thank you.