Artistic Smut
Drew Rowsome encounters a bevy of sailors, cowboys and leathermen as he explores a historic world of champions and rogues.

The spirit behind this year’s Pride slogan “Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop” extends way back to the 1940s. In the days before gay porn became available at the click of a mouse, gay mens’ insatiable need for erotic imagery and community was provided by beefcake photographers. Brandon Matheson, fab publisher and curator of Champions and Rogues a collection of beefcake photographs on show at the O’Connor Gallery, sees these photographers as unsung heroes. “It was a small group of men who faced huge threats of jail time to produce these photos,” explains Matheson. “They put their lives on the line to fight in court.”

While some did do stints in the slammer they were also eventually victorious and paved the way for the flood of gay skin magazines that proliferated in the ’70s and beyond. “Not only did they reach out to isolated gay men,” says Matheson, “but they were the foundation of gay publishing.”

The beefcake magazines created what Matheson calls “smoke screens” to slide their homoerotic images past the police. “There was a health and fitness craze that started around the same time that Charles Atlas started advertising in the backs of comic books,” says Matheson. This created an excuse for titles like Physique Pictorial, Tomorrow’s Man and Young Adonis. Other defences included that they were artistic, which explains the many classical art styled poses of seminude men next to phallic columns, and the naturist movement. Masturbation was not yet considered healthy but the images could be construed to promote healthy living and artistic education.

The magazines in which the photos appeared were mainly shills for advertising the profitable photo sets for sale within. The photo sets were hand printed and mailed out to eager one-handed users. And the sets were far racier than any magazine of the time could allow. Matheson explains that the photos were often sent with posing pouches carefully painted over the exposed genitalia. Upon receipt the water based paint had only to have a bit of spit applied for removal and, presto, fullfrontal nudity.

Some of these photo sets have survived and Champions and Rogues features 50 original prints in all their shimmering silver nitrate glory. The colour photos in particular are a revelation. As Matheson notes, “Colour photos age differently. The colours are more saturated and have a softer glow.” If the charged eroticism of the images is not enough, Champions and Rogues also has one complete set of photos from Champion studios in the original envelope — and the original football jersey worn by the otherwise naked model in the photos. “Thank goodness it was nylon. If it was cotton it would have rotted by now,” laughs Matheson before sighing. “If we only had the jockstrap as well.”


Champions and Rogues runs ’til Sun July 12 at the O’Connor Gallery, 145 Berkeley St. Info: oconnorgallery.com

Drew Rowsome is an associate editor at fab and always appreciates some good nudes.