Martin Schoeller, artist or villain?

[thesamewords]

No one wants to get a photo that exposes themselves from an exclusive vantage point. I think Mike is very accurate by stating that these photos are real, but to be exact i would say they are Hyperreal.You would never see any of these women the looking the same way with out the exclusive sight and vantage point of the camera. If anyone wants to do a little browsing( just for fun) look up Ron Mueck and check out feed back on The Uncanny Valley. You will be surprised to know that these photos are so damn raw they probably scare or disgust the people that are in them.

[Curt James]

My turn to knock the dust off this thread.

Look at you knocking the dust off this thread.

Again, I heard Schoeller ask Vicki Nixon not to smile. Purchase "Beyond the Pain: The Vicki Nixon Story" to see the clip of him photographing Nixon.

Many of the ladies seemed to be able to show off their personality even within the mugshot starkness which Schoeller seemed to have as his goal.

Love this shot of Rivieccio.

The NY Daily News removed that link and the photo of Rivieccio, but I found the image and saved it to my Picasa gallery along with some other shots.


Annie Rivieccio

Watching Mike Pulcinella's "Beyond the Pain" (again) which showcases Vicki Nixon's physique career. There's a scene in the DVD with Schoeller speaking with Nixon and her husband about the project and then of Schoeller photographing her.


Vicki Nixon


Tazzie Colomb


Nicole Ball

Found this article while Googling. The author is clearly not a fan of the muscular look, however still offers an interesting perspective on Schoeller's work and the subsequent exhibition.

The Strength of Women

Martin Schoeller
Female Bodybuilders

By Norman Borden


Martin Schoeller, “Fannie Barrios, Female Bodybuilders”, 2003

Photographs of female bodybuilders are nothing new and as close your local newsstand, but Martin Schoeller’s images have an important difference—they pack enough strength to push you back and then draw you in. The six photographs in the series are 89” x72” (also available as 61 ” x 50” print) so their sheer size helps them pack a punch. (A grid of sixty 12 by 10 inch images is also part of the show.)

When you walk into the gallery, the sight of a serious looking, large breasted Fannie Barrios, head alluringly cocked to one side, will not prevent you from grimacing or saying “Ugh!” or other repulsive comment. But once you notice the sculpted details of her physique, you’re ready for a second, closer look.

Schoeller, who is well-known for his close up detailed portraits of celebrities and lesser mortals, turned his lens on female bodybuilders in 2003 and spent five years photographing them in all their six-pack glory. Schoeller says, “They challenge the boundaries of not only the shifting, maddening and ruthless standards of the female beauty industry, but what constitutes unnatural.”

Each subject stares straight at the camera, locking eyes with you, almost commanding you to “look at me.” You do, but not for long. Schoeller says the women consider themselves to be artists, their bodies their greatest creation. But as the photographer says, their work goes unrewarded because they are women. Men who achieve the same level of physical perfection are more accepted and rewarded. Here though, it’s a real woman’s world. Take a look for yourself and try not to stare.

From http://www.nyphotoreview.com/NYPR_REVS/NYPR_REV534.html

More @ http://www.acegallery.net/artwork.ph...=126&Artist=41

[Curt James]

Here is the video clip of Martin working with Vicki Nixon that Curt mentioned in his OP.



For what its worth I find Martin's work riveting!

A very belated thank you, Mike!

ABP appears completing his amazing portrait of Vicki near the end of the film, too.

[Curt James]

(snip) LOVE the one of Nadia Nardi, though. Of the ones you posted here, hers is the most beautiful.

Bonny, Yaxeni, Annie, and C-Roth also look nice. Bonny's is really intriguing to me.

Nadia Nardi


Bonny Priest


Yaxeni Oriquen


Christine Roth