John Barrington is by far the most prolific and best known of the British physique photographers of the 1950s and 60s. Today, we will look at a new side of him that I only recently discovered, i.e., that he was a decent artist who did some nice male nude drawings. I'm also adding some biographical details throughout today's series, but click on the tag and read more from previous posts if you like. He once bragged that he had sex with all his models, something that was not quite the truth, although he certainly bedded a lot of them. All this was while he maintained a home in a leafy London suburb with his wife and twin daughters. I'm not sure if the above photo is a self portrait, but the spots on it make me think so. As you'll see, he apparently favored quantity over quality in his work.
A blast from the past. Mentioned before, he lived near me in south west London. In the mid 80s he was still advertising for models in Naturist and I think early gay magazines. I was so tempted to apply. He even gave a 'phone number, I rang it..and chickened out...I've just found he produced an artist's reference work "Anthropometry and Anatomy for Artists with over 700 illustrations". I suspect the "bits" are all fuzzed out.
ReplyDeleteI recently came across an image of the cover of that book you mention, and it showed sculptures that might have been by Barrington. A viewer sent me a private note saying he had attended two prestigious art colleges when he was younger.
DeleteI might get a copy of the book..only £16.
DeleteIt would make sense for you to see what he has to say on the subject. I'm emailing you a snippet of text you might enjoy.
DeleteMonsieur Barrington avec sa cigarette, ressemble a un Americain de l'epoque.
ReplyDeleteCavalier et insouciant.
Gentilhomme a Paris
Yes, he does have that look.
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