Weekend Highlights: Legends of Physique
Weekend Highlights: Legends of Physique
Highlights from AFTER DARK: Photography
Lot 37: Edwin F. Townsend (American, 1879-1948). Nude Portrait of Tony Sansone in Studio, ca. 1930s. Gelatin silver print. Estimated at $1,000 - $1,500.
Our upcoming AFTER DARK: Photography catalog features an array of physique photography from all eras of the practice. Starting from some of the earliest examples of the genre, Lot 37 is a rare full-nude portrait by the American photographer Edwin F. Townsend. From the 1920s-1950s, Townsend operated a photography studio in Manhattan, producing both dance and theater photography as well as nude portraits coded within the “physical culture” genre. The model and actor Tony Sansone was one of his favorite muses, and would become the primary subject of Townsend’s physical culture publications, such as Sansone: Modern Classics (1932) and Rhythm (1935).
Lot 32: Collection of Twenty-Three (23) Collotypes of Tony Sansone and Bill Hillgardner, ca. 1937. Collotype. Estimated at $1,200 - $1,800.
Lot 28: A Set of Four (4) Rare, Hand-Tinted Photographs by Bruce of Los Angeles. Hand-tinted photograph. Estimated at $800 - $1,000.
Also featured in our upcoming auction are a variety of photographs by Bruce of Los Angeles, one of the most prolific physique photographers of the 1950s-1960s. Our offerings in the catalog span the whole range of Bruce of LA’s work, ranging from his early photography of the men of Muscle Beach in Santa Monica to his more explicit, homoerotic material. Of particular note are the rare, hand-tinted photographs featured in Lots 26-28, produced in the early 1970s. Examples of hand-tinted photographs by Bruce of LA are few and far between, as such works were made shortly before the artist’s death in 1974, and did not see any further production from Bruce’s negatives under the later Kensington Road studio.
Lot 59: Collection of Twenty-Five (25) Physique Photographs by Bruce of Los Angeles. Gelatin silver print. Estimated at $800 - $1,200.
Lot 58: Collection of Fourty-Eight (48) Physique Photographs in Color by Bob Mizer, ca. 1970s. Cibachrome photograph. Estimated at $1,500 - $2,500.
AFTER DARK: Photography will also feature a series of lots from a comprehensive archive of photography by Bob Mizer’s Athletic Model Guild. Bob Mizer’s AMG is widely considered the most influential beefcake photography and film studio within the genre’s history. AMG produced a broad range of material, from coded, homoerotic wrestling images to costumed photoshoots featuring naval officers, cowboys, bikers, and other masculine archetypes. By the 1970s, AMG was able to produce more overtly sexual color photos and films, with Lots 99-101 from our current catalog hailing from this era.
Lot 25: Grouping of Seven (7) Physique Photographs by Bob Mizer featuring outdoor scenes. Gelatin silver print. Estimated at $600 - $900.
Lot 7: Mel Roberts (American, 1923-2007). Bobby, Pacific Palisades, 1959, printed in 2000 for California Boys. Cibachrome print. 5/50. Estimated at $800 - $1,200.
Our final highlight of the day is this photograph taken by the pioneering gay American photographer Mel Roberts. Roberts was best known for both his intimate photography of the beach-bodied men of California as well as his work as a gay rights activist. As an active member of the Mattachine Society and an openly gay man producing an extensive body of photographic work, Roberts faced significant hurdles as an artist of the McCarthy era, eventually cutting his career short in 1981. Rediscovered in 1996 by fellow photographer Rick Castro, Roberts received renewed recognition for his work in the form of a series of exhibitions and publications throughout the late 1990s-early 2000s. The cibachrome photograph from our catalog was produced by the artist for the California Boys: Photographs from the 1960s and 1970s retrospective in 2000.
AFTER DARK: Photography is a comprehensive history of photography of the male form, and our selection of physique photography is not limited to the works in today’s highlight. Discover works from all throughout the genre’s history and range, from the great photographers of the Western US like Don WhitmanandMilo of Los Angelesto the legends of the East Coast like Danny Fitzgerald and Lon of New York.
Browse the catalog today to find these highlights and much more in AFTER DARK: Photography. There’s still plenty of time to register, request condition reports, or place pre-bids on any lots you’re interested in for our upcoming September 24th auction!
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