The captivating and timeless masculine beauty of Nino Cesarini, immortalised in his prime on the terrance of Villa Lysis, Capri, circa 1905 by Guglielmo Plüschow. He holds a small statue of Nike, the Greek goddess of victory.
I regret I have not been able to locate any but a tiny copy of this splendid photograph by Vincenzo Galdi, I should love to lay eyes upon a larger scan! Both the boy in the centre, and his companion reclining so confidently exposed over the drapery on the right, seem familiar from some of Galdi’s other pictures, it is always so nice to recognise a handsome model again.
An endearing clasping of hands in this 1880 studio shot of sadly unknown sitters - as with all these pair portraits it is most likely purely platonic affection, all manner of physical intimacy being acceptable in this earlier era : we see many men who were dear friends photographed in an embrace, legs entwined, or perched in one anothers’ laps, without causing so much as a raised eyebrow in their own day. It would be foolish to view the surviving images with too modern an eye, and not account for changing attitudes to male affection, but impossible not to wonder how many of these dear friends were not in fact something more to eachother, and kept treasured photographs of themselves with the one they loved.
A classic example of Wilhelm von Gloeden’s work, two gracefully posed models in the youthful perfection of early manhood, and the easy intimacy between them - as natural and beautiful as the outdoor light he uses to such evocative advantage.
Part of an 1855 set by Jean Louis Marie Eugène Durieu, for his friend the artist Delacroix. Early photographers, at least those working in collaboration with artists, turn to recording the male nude for reference purposes - pay the model just once, preserve printed images of the required poses for future use, no matter how long the painting or sculpture may take to develop and be refined into its finished fine form. The quality may not be outstanding but they are fascinating nonetheless.
Though the scenery is clearly painted, and the grass shows wrinkles which betray it is nothing but fabric, I shall happily accept the creative impression that this is indeed a lovely picnic on the lawn by the lake! I am curious about their dress, their trousers both bear a single stripe down the leg albeit of differing width and colour, and the hats are unusual - if any readers know the significance of these items of clothing, or if they were just the fashion of the day, do let me know.
A further image from Guglielmo Plüschow’s photographic session with handsome youth Vincenzo Galdi when he was just 19 years old - doesn’t he have the most lovely legs! This beautifully brooding young man evidently showed a great interest in the process of being immortalised in print, soon he was working as Plüschow’s assistant, later setting up his own studio - on the same street as his mentor, no less.
John Laurie Wallace, 1895, in a neatly balanced cross-legged pose before the camera of Thomas Eakins - a friend for whom he often modelled these early outdoor photographs which would be used for anatomical studies, or provide the reference for painted scenes. Although taken merely to assist with later artwork, and not to be published as art in their own right, they have a basic, down-to-earth appeal all of their own and I am very fond of them.
Photographed in Taormina by the great and justly famed Wilhelm von Gloeden, another of his very well-chosen young men poses elegantly in a marvellous setting of climbers in full heavy flower over the arches of window and door.
A striking sailor with quite remarkable moustache and beard, and his wonderfully attired companion.
His hat band reads HMS Otter (of which there have been many), from the dates we can pick out the most likely ship as the Avon-class destroyer which was stationed in China from 1896 to 1916.
John Wright posing for George Reynolds (and a rather indifferent cat) in the studio of Thomas Eakins, Philadelphia, late 19th Century.
I almost omitted this delightful photograph from the collection, under the mistaken impression I had posted it already! Here we see the young Vincenzo Galdi, 19, posing so prettily for Guglielmo Plüschow,1895, at Mergellina on Posillipo hill. Previous portraits of Galdi by Plüschow can be found here
A stunning contribution from generous reader Alan - though this looks decidely 1920’s I could not resist including it, the fine masculine beauty of the model and the pin-sharp clarity of the photograph create an image of timeless appeal to the admiring eye. Notice he wields a knife in his raised hand, if you can bring yourself to turn attention away from his magnificent physique!
Torn corners always make me so glad the rest survived, that we can still see their picture now.
A 19th Century photograph in good condition is a lovely and fortunate thing, a damaged one can be just as beautiful in its own way - the wear and tear of years adds to the history of the thing, and the age itself is what makes these images so interesting.
What secret soft words do they whisper, what little lost message from one to the other as they pose here in von Gloeden’s own garden, late in the day, that time of long shadows and rapidly vanishing light. The shade has almost reached the reclining boy, his hand already obscured - was this the last shot of the day, an informal moment captured before the sun set too low?
