Naked Men

This is a book about men who were beautiful enough and brave enough to bare all for photographers and painters between he years of 1935 and 1955. Forty-eight men are represented, of whom thirty-two were still living when I began working on the project (three have since died). Their modern-day portraits have been taken by a talented young photographer, Ethan Winslow, as a record of my encounters and to contrast with the stylized beauty of the past (remarkably, for the most part they remain beautiful and brave). In many ways this book came about because its time was due, as interest in the art and photography of the prewar and wartime periods has revived. The photography of this era looks surprisingly modern to our eyes. In particular, photographs of the male nude that were once only for the private collector now inspire today's artists and creative directors.