Sadao Hasegawa – Page 2 – { feuilleton }

Forbidden Colours

Wilhelm von Gloeden‘s version of the Flandrin pose as it appears on the cover of a 1989 Gallimard edition of Forbidden Colours by Yukio Mishima. I included this photograph in the very first posting which examines the recurrence of Flandrin’s Jeune Homme Assis au Bord de la Mer but this is the first time I’ve seen it used on a book cover. The French twist the title into “forbidden loves” and in so doing lose Mishima’s punning subtlety.

The Ballad To a Severed Little Finger (1966).

Searching around earlier turned up a nice collection of poster works by the great Japanese collage artist, Tadanori Yokoo. One of these from 1966 is dedicated to Mishima, while the one above shows actor Ken Takakura in one of his many yakuza roles. Yokoo regarded Mishima as a major influence and further cemented the relationship by making an appearance in Paul Schrader’s 1985 film, Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters. By convoluted coincidence, Schrader received his start in Hollywood ten years earlier with a co-written screenplay, The Yakuza, which Sidney Pollack directed. Ken Takakura reprised his gangster persona in that film, along with Robert Mitchum. It’s a good piece of neo-noir, worth seeking out.

For more Tadanori Yokoo, see some of the recent posts by Will at A Journey Round My Skull.

Elsewhere on { feuilleton }
• The recurrent pose archive

Previously on { feuilleton }
• The art of Goh Mishima, 1924–1989
• The art of Hideki Koh
• Mishima’s Rite of Love and Death
• Secret Lives of the Samurai
• Guido Reni’s Saint Sebastian
• The art of Sadao Hasegawa, 1945–1999
• The art of Takato Yamamoto

The art of Goh Mishima, 1924–1989

Untitled.

The gay artists archive is currently receiving more than twice as many visits as the rest of these pages so here’s a new addition to what is, it should be stressed, only a personal selection, not a definitive catalogue.

Goh Mishima (born Tsuyoshi Yoshida) specialised in what everyone seems to call “Yakazuza porn” although many of his men have fewer tattoos than genuine Japanese gangsters. Given the Japanese predilection for exploring every fetish imaginable someone had to cover this area. His name, of course, alludes to writer Yukio Mishima and there’s a lot about his work that Mishima would have enjoyed. The Tom of Finland Foundation has a small selection of works and there’s also an exhibition of originals running this month at the Gramercy Gallery. ~~Their site is blighted by pointless Flash bollocks, however; go here instead for further pictures.~~ (Dead link: try the Leslie Lohman Museum or this page at Japanese Gay Art instead.)

Note: The Tom of Finland Foundation biography page says Goh Mishima died three days before Emperor Hirohito in “1988”. Since Hirohito actually died in 1989 that’s the date I’ve listed here.

Elsewhere on { feuilleton }
• The gay artists archive

Previously on { feuilleton }
• The art of Hideki Koh
• Mishima’s Rite of Love and Death
• Secret Lives of the Samurai
• Guido Reni’s Saint Sebastian
• The art of Sadao Hasegawa, 1945–1999
• The art of Takato Yamamoto

The art of Philip Shadbolt

Lila.

I’d intended to feature Philip Shadbolt’s paintings earlier but his site was offline last time I looked. The hiatus was a temporary one which means that the beautiful men, beatific gods and kaleidoscopic mandalas of his Earth and Spirit galleries are available for viewing again. One of these paintings is very aptly used as the cover art of Thom Ayres’ Arcanta CD, Book of Mirrors, Thom being better known to some of us as our witty and incorrigible host at Planet Fabulon. For more Shadboltiana, see the interior design at myhotel, Brighton.

Elsewhere on { feuilleton }
• The gay artists archive

Previously on { feuilleton }
• The art of Sadao Hasegawa, 1945–1999
• The art of Matthew Stradling

The art of Hideki Koh

Boys in kimonos and shirtless youth are Hideki Koh’s thing and you can see more of these at his site or at Mayumi International. As is all too common, most of the examples shown are painfully small although he has a page of wallpapers. A tip for artists everywhere: we don’t want to steal your work, we just want to see it properly.

Elsewhere on { feuilleton }
• The gay artists archive

Previously on { feuilleton }
• Secret Lives of the Samurai
• The art of Sadao Hasegawa, 1945–1999
• The art of Takato Yamamoto

Secret Lives of the Samurai

Kiss of Death (2007).

From a series of marvellous homoerotic ink drawings by Kenya Shimizu. The artist seems to have no web presence at all, unfortunately, aside from three pages of work for sale at London’s Adonis Art Gallery. Most of the pictures there are hardcore images so if you don’t want to see any of that, don’t look. His paintings are as good as his drawings but I typically prefer the black and white work, especially since there’s a slight Beardsleyesque feel to some of them—or is it merely the Japanese line which Beardsley borrowed? Nice to see a variety of cum shots as well; the first drawing in the Samurai series, Release, is even a bukkake scene, something you rarely see in gay art.

Kenya Shimizu was born in Fukui Prefecture in Japan, 1976. Kenya Shimizu devoted himself early on to mastering the techniques of his art. His homo-erotic fantasies (pen and ink) – very much in the Japanese erotic tradition – are brilliant compositions executed with panache and great skill. His paintings on gold and silver leaf, are masterpieces of watercolour workmanship; His watercolours of modern Japan – reveal and portray the present-day homo-erotic fantasies of the ‘salarymen’ and students of today’s Japan.

Within recent years, one of the leading Japanese practitioners of homo-erotic painting – Sadao Hasegawa – sadly died. Now a worthy successor has come onto the scene.

Elsewhere on { feuilleton }
• The gay artists archive

Previously on { feuilleton }
• The art of Sadao Hasegawa, 1945–1999
• The art of Takato Yamamoto
• The art of ejaculation