I am pretty comfortable with the concept of Sexy - certainly how I see things. The idea of Beauty gets confusing for me. How it is marketed and how all of us collectively try to balance our image vs what others see of us. Where I get really lost, is on the concept of Beauty Pageants. You get a prize for how "pretty" you are. This is not limited to the female pageants, but also the array of everything from Bodybuilding to Drag Queens as well. This objectification of a perfect body by our Western standards of civilization totally messes with all our egos. It has created an enormous industry of beauty products that used to be exclusively for women - no more. And plastic surgery is now a common procedure even if not medically necessary.
And yet I am one of the first to tap into a handsome figure in a Pin-up Calendar of Firemen with puppies or the latest Marvel Universe adventure with a hunky Chris Evans. Thus, a dilemma which makes me a hypocrite.
So when I stumbled onto this studio series 2 years ago, it was something I could enjoy with a guilty pleasure of satire and parody. David Talaski took some of his favorite Super Heroes and reimagined them in drawings that are in the style of old 50's cheeky boudoir shots ala Vargas. He takes their magnified physical traits and a hint of their superpowers, then turns them tongue in cheek. You get both a giggle and a raised brow at the same time. I believe he made a killing with them in everything from Tee shirts to greeting cards. I am sure he targeted the gay market which ate them like hotcakes.
Here are my classics without apology. If you want to see more...
David Talaski; Instagram
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Captain America @ Chris Evans
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Loki @ Tom Hiddleston
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Green Lantern @ Ryan Reynolds
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Thor @ Chris Hemsworth
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The Incredible Hulk
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Don't get me started about the objectification of bodies. I'm a bit of a naive when it comes to objectifying male bodies -- as a woman on the gender preference spectrum who leans toward the male side. I'm entirely holistic -- body, mind, soul -- regardless of whether it's a woman or a man. I love the pictures except I don't know what Thor is holding. Is this some kind of apparatus employed by gay men that I'm ignorant of? No apology needed irrespective of the answer. I would apologize for my ignorance but I think it's important to out one's lapses in knowledge.
ReplyDeleteIt is Thor's Hammer. If you are familiar with the characters in the Marvel series, each of these parodies generally ties in to some aspect of their super powers.
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