Basil S. Clavering (1910-1973) founded Royale Studio in London in the early 1950s. Scrupulously adhering to the restrictive British censorship laws of the time, he produced provocative, but covered homoerotic photos of mainly military types until liberalization in the late 60s allowed more nudity. As you will see, early Royale work featured skin tight pants, underwear, and uniforms. Clavering was joined in his business by John C. Parkhurst (1927-2000) as a junior partner, but significant creative contributor. After Clavering's death, Parkhurst took a different direction with his own photographic work, but diligently conserved the archive of Royale which we can enjoy today. Our first photo from about 1970 features two men whom we only know to be soldiers thanks to their footwear.
This picture was produced by 'Guys in Uniform' (studio 57) in the late 70's. They imitated Royale's style but were not part of that set-up.
ReplyDeleteNot the first time I've mistaken a copycat for the real thing. Thanks for clarifying!
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