'Bathing suits are like twizzlers... you can never have too many,' proclaims VMAN in its 22nd Summer 2011 issue. And when these bathing suits are presented in an editorial by Bruce Weber, how can we say no? Leaving little to the imagination, the sexy 'Photographs of my Neighbors from Bungalow 10c' features models Yev Spiridonov, Erik Soderbergh, Lasse Hansen, Matt Lombardo, Lucas Goossens, Jonathan, Nick Bellenbaum and Jesse Tarr.
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3 comments:
Bruce Weber should retire. Totally over his biased casting selection of white models... as if that's all that exists and I guess it is, in his world and mind. By now his homotography is boring, irrelevant and racist in a world that by now needs to be inclusive as opposed to his documentation of his antiquated, exclusive ideals and short-sighted vision.
Dear kerriis, it's difficult to take your comment seriously when the editorial in this post features at least 5 shots of a non-white model (see 4th & 6th image).
Do some research (at the very least look at the images in the post you're commenting on) before you accuse someone of being a racist. As a fan of Bruce Weber's photography, I have seen a lot of diversity with asian, black & white models in his work, so it's offensive to me to read a false accusation like yours.
Homotography:
First of all you are mistaken. You might have seen a "lot of diversity" but it wasn't from Bruce Weber. And of course I looked at the images... duh? I love how non-ethnic people will get real specific, i.e., "see 4th and 6th image". It's like saying, "Black people, you have a Black President, what are you complaining about? Not realizing that he is one... after 200 years and 43 white presidents... oh but ethnic people are supposed to be grateful because whites finally said okay, we'll let you have one. This is not the point. There is not one single model in this editorial that can be easily pinpointed as ethnic! It's like you suggest that ethnic people should be sated because 2 shots, #4 and #6 reference something that is non-white - we should be grateful. Fuck YOU. Typical.
If you are not aware of the historic short comings of the fashion industry regarding ethnicity, maybe YOU should do the research. Using one or two ethnic people light enough to pass for white or not turn off the white viewer doesn't count. Bruce Weber, historically has not used ethnic men and if you had done your research you could easily recall the Versace book from the 80's that was 100% white male models from cover to cover. The black men he has shot in his career spanning what 30+ years? can be counted on one hand. I was there from the beginning. I grew up with his work. I know his vision from the jump. Ethnic people are an after-thought if that and his body of work as a whole will support that. His clients are historically white, Calvin Klien, Versace, A&F (and we all know the racist imagery attached to A&F - supplied by Weber), Ralph Lauren, etc. How often have those clients used ethnic people? Get real. I am not aware of any asian or latino men that have graced his camera lens for any of those clients and if they did it was a flash in the pan, meaning one here and one there. But according to you that's ok.
What you fail to realize is the reality of the situation.
In fashion, white is the standard and ethnic is the trend... if they are trending at all... mostly not. Asians have not been the trend since the mid 80's. Latino men don't exist in fashion at all, unless of course they are so fair no one is the wiser. Even the hotness from Brazil - the industry never uses the brown skinned Brazilians, they choose to hire the fairer complected male models which you could not distinguish from the white American male models.
But how could you know that? You obviously don't deal with discrimination and it is not an issue that you deal with on a daily basis. You don't know what its like to have to constantly look at white imagery produced by the fashion industry, but never see anything that is relative to you or the people in your world. But the industry will gladly accept your dollars.
For me in the end, Bruce Weber's photography is nothing unique. We see the same thing over and over from him for decades. YOU might be a fan but I am not...
I'm ecstatic that you're offended. Maybe now you will open your eyes and understand that your world is not the same for everyone that you have taken for granted all this time and that Bruce Weber is one that has perpetuated that white is right ideal for a very long time.
Sometimes one must open their eyes and see this country for what it is and the lies it perpetuates, whether they are a part of that schema or not.. If a picture is worth a thousand words, BW's body of work screams VIVA WHITE AMERICA!
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