domenica 16 ottobre 2016

George Quaintance (Contea di Page, 3 giugno 1902 – 8 novembre 1957) Artist

George Quaintance

George Quaintance (Contea di Page, 3 giugno 1902 – 8 novembre 1957) è stato un pittore, scenografo, fotografo e ballerino statunitense, conosciuto inizialmente soprattutto all'interno della comunità gay per le sue creazioni di nudo maschile nella fotografia in stile beefcake.

Biografia

Apertamente omosessuale fin dall'adolescenza, anche se in maniera molto discreta e da velato per non incorrere nella persecuzione legale allora vigente, fu brevemente sposato nel 1929 con Miriam Chester. Nel 1930 iniziò a lavorare come parrucchiere ma poco dopo decise di diventare illustratore di copertine di riviste.
Le sue opere, finemente disegnate e dipinte, raffiguranti scene ambientate in epoche e ambienti come il selvaggio far West o l'antica Grecia e l'antica Roma o l'ambiente dei matador, sono versioni idealizzate in cui uomini muscolosi, nudi o seminudi, si pongono in situazioni di intimo cameratismo.
La sua arte ha contribuito a creare lo stereotipo dello "stallone macho", ben presente all'interno del mondo omosessuale americano dell'immediato dopoguerra; pioniere dell'estetica gay ha influenzato anche molti artisti successivi tra cui Tom of Finland.
Morì per un attacco di cuore a 55 anni.

Bibliografia

Mizer, Bob (a cura di), Complete Reprint of Physique Pictorial, 1951-1964, Cologne, Taschen, 1997.
George Quaintance, The Art of George Quaintance, 3rd, Janssen Verlag, agosto 2003, ISBN 978-1-919901-10-7.

hedy lamarr

George Quaintance (June 3, 1902 – November 8, 1957) was a gay American artist, famous for his "idealized, strongly homoerotic" depictions of men in mid-20th-century physique magazines. Using historical settings to justify the nudity or distance the subjects from modern society, his art featured idealized muscular, semi-nude or nude male figures; Wild West settings were a common motif. His artwork helped establish the stereotype of the "macho stud" who was also homosexual, leading him to be called a 'pioneer of a gay aesthetic'. He was an influence on many later homoerotic artists, such as Tom of Finland.

Biography

Quaintance was born in Page County, Virginia, and grew up on a farm, displaying an aptitude for art. Even as a teen, Quaintance has been described as "obviously and actively homosexual", despite being closeted. At the age of 18 he studied at the Art Students League in New York City, where, as well as painting and drawing, he studied dance, which led to him meeting and briefly marrying Miriam Chester. In the 1930s, he became a hairstylist. His first art assignments were anonymous advertising work, but by 1934 he had begun to sell freelance cover illustrations to a variety of "spicy" pulp magazines, such as Gay French Life, Ginger, Movie Humor, Movie Merry Go-Round, Snappy Detective Mysteries, Snappy Stories, Stolen Sweets, and Tempting Tales. These were sold at burlesque halls as well as under-the-counter at discreet newsstands. These illustrations, which were clearly influenced by Enoch Bolles, were often signed "Geo. Quintana."
In 1938, he returned home with his companion Victor Garcia, described as Quaintance's "model, life partner, and business associate", who was the subject of many of Quaintance's photographs in the 1940s. In 1951, Quaintance's art was used for the first cover of Physique Pictorial, edited by Bob Mizer of the Athletic Model Guild. In the early 1950s, Quaintance and Garcia moved to Rancho Siesta, in Phoenix, Arizona, which became the home of Studio Quaintance, a business venture based around Quaintance's artworks. In 1953, Quaintance completed a series of three paintings about a matador, modeled by Angel Avila, another of his lovers. By 1956, the business had become so successful that Quaintance could not keep up with the demand for his works.
George Quaintance died of a heart attack on November 8, 1957.

card set

Quaintance Illusion

card set

censor

rodeo victor

bacchant

Bob Delmonteque

masque

Hair and Kiss

island boy

neptunes

bob mizer

forrester

1937waterlily

ny man models

odin

dubois

Stephen Barclay

trumpeter

1-2. Coral Reef & Sunlit Depths
Lost for years, then found again in a thrift store, this duo went missing once more when the owner passed away in 2004. Last known whereabouts: Dallas, Texas.
3. Kanaka Fisherman
Three distinct versions of this painting exist. Two of these are accounted for. The one that is lost is the one that appeared in the studio's catalogs and was offered as an 8x10 photo.
4. Moribundo
An email correspondent related to me that Moribundo was sold in the 1960s to a collector "somewhere in the Midwest." The owner was later arrested, tried and jailed in a federal prison for three months for sending a "pornographic" image through the U.S. mail. Moribundo was allegedly confiscated and destroyed. No further details were available and I was unable to corroborate this information.
5. Saturday Night
This iconic image is unusual in that there's no nudity whatsoever and, except for the bartender, every pose was modeled by Jim Glasper, the man who, according to Quaintance, had perfect buttocks. It was told to me that this painting was owned by Paul Reubens (aka Pee-wee Herman). It was allegedly seized by the government, along with much of Reubens' extensive erotic art collection, in 2004, when Reubens was arrested and charged with "possession of obscene material improperly depicting a child under the age of 18 in sexual conduct." Those charges were later dropped. Attempts to contact Reubens to confirm his ownership of Saturday Night were never successful.
6. Rodeo Victor
This is the only canvas that Victor Garcia ever refused to sell. He kept it and gave it to a later boyfriend, Glen Martin. Its present whereabouts are unknown.
7-8. Night in the Desert & Slave Market
I had anecdotal information about the owners of these canvases but I was never able to confirm it, so they are considered lost.
The following canvases I don't even have anecdotal information about.
9. Edwardo
10. Gloria
11. In the Arms of Morpheus
12. Island Boy
13. Lake Apache
14. Noise in the Night
15. Pearl Diver
16 Point Loma
17. Swan Lake
18. Temptation
19. Trial by Combat
20. White Captive