A journal by artist and designer John Coulthart.
A brace of elegant fencers posing for an Elle Italia spread by photographer Ruven Afanador whose Torero series was highlighted here in April. Afanador’s recent work is worth a look for the set showing a model posing in an antiquated schoolroom among bones and stuffed animals. Via Homotography.
Elsewhere on { feuilleton }
• The men with swords archive
Previously on { feuilleton }
• Torero
You don’t have to agree with bullfighting to appreciate Torero, Ruven Afanador‘s photo series which brings to the surface the usually latent but always present homoerotics of the sport. These were part of a book collection in 2001 which seems now to be out of print.
With Torero, Ruven Afanador lays open a world of poignant beauty and sensuality – not the atmosphere of the bullfight, but the intimate world of proud young matadors in all their manly valor, and youthful dreams intact. This exquisitely produced volume of Afanador’s black-and-white portraits, taken over a period of two years comprise the most substantial collection of torero images ever published. In Mexico, Peru, Spain and his native Columbia, Afanador opens the door to the famously closed society of bullfighters, offering his elegant, private view of the boys and young men raised in a centuries-old Latin tradition, capturing their balletic beauty, and their distinctly, undeniably erotic aura. Through these iconic portraits, Afanador also gorgeously documents the sumptuous and richly-crafted couture-like costumes and the timeless symbols of the torero culture.
