Category Archives: eroticism

Daedalus devised a hollow wooden cow

A minotaur is a legendary half-creature.

George Frederic Watts‘s The Minotaur

George Frederic Watts paints The Minotaur in 1885 [1].

In 1898 Klimt contributed the poster “Theseus and the Minotaur“[2] to the first Vienna Secession group exhibition, a poster rich in symbolic meaning. The fig-leaf was deliberately missing, which caused some controversy.

The Minotaur creature was the offspring of a certain Queen Pasiphae and a white bull. The myth goes thus: after one of Poseidon‘s angry spells which caused Pasiphae to be overcome with a fit of madness in which she fell in love with the bull, Pasiphae went to Daedalus for assistance, and Daedalus devised a way for her to satisfy her passions. He constructed a hollow wooden cow covered with cowhide for Pasiphae to hide in and allow the bull to mount her. The result of this union was the Minotaur.

Looking for more minotaurs brings up Michael Parkes‘s one[3].

Update: a wikified comment by Paul Rumsey.

Watts was inspired to paint this picture by reading “The Maiden Tribute of Modern Babylon” by William Thomas Stead. The tiny bird crushed in the hand of the minotaur is symbolic of the child prostitute.

Update: Last night, before falling asleep the image of the below VHS cover sprang to mind.

The Coming of Sin (1978) by Spanish Eurotrash director José Ramón Larraz. The cover of the VHS echoes the union of Pasiphaë and the bull that produced the Minotaur.

The Coming of Sin (1978) José Ramón Larraz

Wei Dong, and, Icon of Erotic Art #40

Chinese contemporary art is the most creative strain of contemporary art. I’ve previously featured work by Yue Minjun [1] and Liu Jianhua [2].

Over the past couple of days (an intensive browsing session) I find Wei Dong [3], who can best be described as the Chinese John Currin [4].

I could have discovered Dong in 2006 when Bait (2005) was featured on phantasmaphile [5] and in that same year when PonyXpress featured him[6], but I didn’t.

For those of you in NY, please visit the Nicholas Robinson Gallery and check Dong’s Playmate, (2008)[7].

Playmate is Icon of Erotic Art #40.

Georges Bataille’s Story of the Eye: the film

[Youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=daaKRAWTjJ8]

Georges Bataille’s Story of the Eye is a 2004 American film adaptation of the 1928 novel by the French writer Georges Bataille. The film, directed by Andrew Repasky McElhinney, takes place in a seemingly abandoned house where a group of people engage in wordless acts of passion. The film covers a period from evening to morning, and the sexual couplings among the members of the house becomes increasingly harrowing as daylight arrives.

Georges Bataille’s Story of the Eye began as a video installation before being reconfigured into a feature-length film. It had its New York theatrical premiere in September 2004, and its support was led by Dave Kehr of the New York Times, who wrote of the production; “This is transgression in a literal sense, an act of aggression that Bataille would no doubt have appreciated. This is not a movie for passive consumption, but a film that bites back.”

Introducing Alva Bernadine and icon of erotic art #39

Introducing Alva Bernadine and icon of erotic art [1] #39

Back in the day, when I was still editing Jahsonic.com, I had amassed a list of erotic photographers I thought were important. The list consisted of Alva Bernadine, Gilles Berquet, Guy Bourdin, Steve Diet Goedde, Nan Goldin, David Hamilton, Irina Ionesco, Richard Kern, Doris Kloster, Eric Kroll, David LaChapelle, Sally Mann, Robert Mapplethorpe, Steven Meisel, Carlo Mollino, Helmut Newton, Man Ray , Bettina Rheims, Paolo Roversi, Thomas Ruff, Jan Saudek, Jeanloup Sieff, Romain Slocombe, Roy Stuart, Jock Sturges, Ellen Von Unwerth, Trevor Watson and Theodore Zichy.

Today is the day to introduce Alva Bernadine, a man whose work is a fusion of the erotic and the surreal.

Alva Bernadine (born June 17, 1961) is a British photographer born in Grenada, West Indies, and brought to London at the age of six. He is self-trained and has photographed for Vogue, GQ, Elle and others. Winner of the Vogue/Sotheby’s Cecil Beaton Award, he was also twice nominated English “Erotic Photographer of the Year.” His book Bernadinism: How to Dominate Men and Subjugate Women was published by Stemmle in 2001 with text by Nerve cofounder Genevieve Field. His work is self-admittedly inspired by Guy Bourdin, shows influences of the Distortions series [2] by Hungarian photographer André Kertész. Bernadine describes himself as an anti-portrait photographer, since he rarely shows faces, which gives his work that distinct forniphilia/sexual objectification* look. A recurring theme in his work is the mirroring of a female from the waist up/down[3][4].

The Philosopher Illumined by Candlelight – Alva Bernadine (image used with permission of author)

I’ve chosen his work The Philosopher Illumined by Candlelight as the current icon of erotic art. The photo depicts a man in a suit sitting in a darkened bedroom reading by candlelight. The lighted candle is protruding from a woman’s vagina. The picture has elicited comments of sexual objectification and misogyny. Objecters find more “proof” of Bernadine’s “misogyny” over here[5].

On the accusations of misogyny he says:

“I don’t really think about that [accusations of misogyny],” he declares. “Normally, I get an idea for a picture and if I can’t think of a good reason not, I take it. I can’t censor my own stuff.”

“That doesn’t bother me much, … you bring your own experiences to a picture. Sometimes I am surprised at the way they’re interpreted, but every opinion is as valid as mine because I haven’t usually formed an opinion before I’ve taken the shot. It’s only later that I work out the ramification. My work isn’t about subtlety. I need a reaction. It’s better to be a bad influence than no influence at all.”

On his inspiration for Illumined Bernadine commented:

“I once listened to a late night BBC Radio 4 programme called Sex in the Head where people described their sexual fantasies and on it a woman described how she enjoyed her partner reading his newspaper by the light of a candle placed in her vagina.

The image stayed in my head and 2 or 3 years later I was able to find a couple who agreed to model for the picture.”

You can find more by Bernadine at:

*In the forniphilia/sexual objectification/erotic furniture category belong artworks such as Chair, Table and Hat Stand[1] (1969) by Allen Jones and Les Krims‘s Heavy Feminist with Wedding Cake [2] (1970).

Gratuitous nudity #16

Gratuitous nudity #16

The Naked Venus

The Naked Venus is a 1959 nudist film directed by American director Edgar G. Ulmer*. With Patricia Conelle, Don Roberts, Arianne Ulmer.

The current entry of gratuitous nudity does not even feature nudity … only hints at it (see innuendo). Can’t be careful enough these days! Ask the Undead Film Critic.

*Edgar G. Ulmer (1904 –1972) was an Austrian–American film director. He is best remembered for the movies The Black Cat (1934) and Detour (1945). These stylish and eccentric works have achieved cult status, but Ulmer’s other films remain relatively unknown.

New erotic fiction in France

Coños by Juan Manuel de Prada (in the Valdemar edition)

De Papieren Man reports[1] that French publishing house Seuil just launched an erotic fiction series in its Points collection of cheap paperbacks.

Nine titles have been published at the end of January. They feature strikingly bright pink covers. “Parce que la littérature est une provocation…” (Eng: Because literature is a provocation), goes the slogan to the new collection.

The slogan reminds me of Mallarmé‘s famous dictum on the subversive qualities of book reading “Je ne sais pas d’autre bombe, qu’un livre.” (I know of no bomb other than the book.)

Four titles were acquired from other publishing houses. Coños[2] by Juan Manuel de Prada, Le Beau Sexe des hommes by Florence Ehnuel, Le Fouet by Martine Roffinella and Légendes de Catherine M. by Jacques Henric on the exploits of his wife Catherine Millet. Other titles include La vie sexuelle de Catherine M. by Catherine Millet, Le Boucher by Alina Reyes and Putain by Nelly Arcan; an anthology of erotic poetry by Jean-Paul Goujon. Director of Points is Emmanuelle Vial. First prints range from 4.500 to 8.400 copies, price hovers between 6 to 8 euros. Every two books bought merit a “naughty gift” by lingerie brand Yoba. The first present was a mask.

It was not the first time that the color pink came to symbolize eroticism in the media. In the eighties started the popular TV series Série Rose.

Happy birthday Radley Metzger!

Unidentified photo of Radley Metzger

Radley Metzger, American filmmaker, distributor and producer turns 80 today.

If all roads lead to Rome, Metzger‘s birthday leads to The Image, one of the sexiest films of the 1970s.

She lifts her skirt for her mistress.

The Image / The Punishment of Anne (1975) – Radley Metzger [Amazon.com] [FR] [DE] [UK]

The Image is a 1975 film directed by Radley Metzger. The film is based upon the 1956 French novel L’Image, written by Catherine Robbe-Grillet, wife of Alain Robbe-Grillet.

The story of Jean (played by Carl Parker), a writer who meets an old friend, Claire (Marilyn Roberts), at a party and is soon drawn into her world of sadomasochism along with her slave, Anne (Mary Mendum, aka Rebecca Brooke, and Metzger’s girlfriend at the time).

Watch out for the fountain scene if you ever get to see this gem, it makes very clever Freudian use of a free Parisian spectacle.

The film is World Cinema Classic #80.

Egon Schiele, Jane Birkin and Brian Eno, or a cult item if there ever was one

Egon Schiele Excess & Punishment

[Youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmOFvKmivxU&]

From the film “Egon Schiele Exzess und Bestrafung” (1981) starring Mathieu Carrière, Jane Birkin and Christine Kaufmann with an original score by Brian Eno. A cult item if there ever was one. Dedicated to Rafaela for her appreciation of sensualism and Esotika for his appreciation of European cinema.

For those of you with prurient interests (wink, wink), scrub to 3:00 and various subsequent points in time you will have to find for yourself.

Eno’s score is mesmerizing and blissful.

From my wiki:

Egon Schiele Exzess und Bestrafung, also known as Excess and Punishment(English) and Egon Schiele, enfer et passion (French) is a 1980 film based on the life of the Austrian artist Egon Schiele. It stars Mathieu Carriere as Schiele with Jane Birkin as his artist muse Wally and Christine Kaufmann as his wife Edith and Christina Van Eyck as her sister. The film is essentially a depiction of obsession and its constituents of sex, alcohol and uncontrolled emotions. Set in Austria during the Great War Schiele is depicted as the agent of social change leading to destruction of those he loves and ultimately of himself.

The film is an international co-production with actors of German, French, Dutch and English origin. It was directed by Herbert Vesely and produced by Dieter Geissler and Robert Hess. The cinematography is by Rudolf Blahacek and the haunting music is by Brian Eno. The English language version of the film is entitled Egon Schiele Excess & Punishment.

Introducing the late Tina Aumont

Tina Aumont in Frédéric Pardo‘s Home Movie

Male viewers pressed for time may want to scrub to 2.37

Tina Aumont (14 February 1946 – 28 October 2006) was an American actress of French, and Dominican descent.

Her parents

She was born in Hollywood, California, the daughter of actors Jean-Pierre Aumont and Maria Montez who he had met in Hollywood. Maria Montez was known as the Queen of Technicolor, an early camp icon and idol to American experimental filmmaker Jack Smith, whose Flaming Creatures (1963) is basically a travesty on Hollywood B movies and tribute to actress Maria Montez.

Back to Tina

Tina married actor and film director Christian Marquand in 1963, at the age of 17.

She made her debut as Tina Marquand in Joseph Losey‘s 1966 movie Modesty Blaise. She worked in Italian cinema with, among others, Alberto Sordi (Scusi, lei è favorevole o contrario?, 1966), Tinto Brass (L’urlo, 1968 and Salon Kitty, 1975), Mauro Bolognini (Fatti di gente perbene, 1974), Francesco Rosi (Cadaveri eccellenti, 1975), and Federico Fellini (Fellini’s Casanova, 1976).

In 2000 she retired from film work and died in France at age 60.

PS: Tina Aumont was brought to my attention via a Dutch blog. Moon in the Gutter was there[2] before me. Here[3] is a Tina Aumont photo taken by Frédéric Pardo from the site http://paris70.free.fr/ dedicated to French counterculture of the fashionable variety (as contrasted to the political variety). I discover Philippe Bone.

Surrealist erotica

I’ve reported before (see Investigating Sex: Surrealist Discussions 1928-1932, Desire Unbound, Sade / Surreal) on the intimate relationship between Surrealism and eroticism.

Creation Books have just announced their newest title: Extreme Surrealist Erotica which reprints[1] the novel 1929 by Aragon and Péret (with photographs by Man Ray) and the novel Mad Balls by Benjamin Péret.

From Creation:

Aragon and Péret’s 1929, originally written to cover printer’s fees for a Surrealist magazine, and long out of print in any edition, is considered to be one of the great “clandestine” books of modern French erotic literature. Published anonymously, the book was printed in Belgium in an edition of 215 copies. Seized by French customs, most copies of 1929 were destroyed as obscene, particularly due to the four hardcore Man Ray photographs featuring Kiki of Montparnasse, the muse of many surrealists. These images are generally omitted from catalogues of the photographer’s works. Its authors were amongst Surrealism’s greatest proponents, and the same sense of daring, iconoclasm and black humour that permeates their official works can also be seen in these candidly erotic poems and photographs.

Benjamin Péret’s Mad Balls (Les Couilles Enragées) dates from 1928 and would, if published, have formed the third in a trinity of violent, blasphemous and pornographic surrealist works written that same year, alongside Aragon’s Irene’s Cunt and Georges Bataille’s Story of the Eye. Eventually published under a pseudonym in 1954 by Eric Losfeld, Mad Balls is a definitive explosion of Péret’s virulent anti-religious and erotic delirium. With seven explicit illustrations by Yves Tanguy, it is published here alongside 1929 for the very first time, making this an indispensible collector’s compendium of classic “lost” surrealist erotica.