It was pose, or more specifically, Posturing, that first drew me to the work of filmmaker and photographer Paul Sixta. It was this theme, that again had me contacting Paul about featuring more of his work.
I was instantly drawn to the image below. I love Paul's shot of Rotterdam dancer Alexandre. I love the pose, I love the positioning, I love how Paul captured the loft lighting, not cascading over Alexandre, but pointing and focusing our view towards him. Most of all, I loved Alexandre's smile. His unique body position, along with his natural, and totally adorable smile, create a fun, sexy and playful image.
Playful isn't an adjective usually used when describing images of the nude male form, but it fits this shoot beautifully. Paul's work with Alexandre is part of his Men At Home project, a series of images featuring models just at home, but interacting with their home environment. I love the imaginative and playful feel to the images. When we're young, we physically interact more intensely with our home and surroundings.
We jump on beds, we roll on floors, we grab, touch and pull ourselves across and up towards ceilings, corners and spaces in our homes. We run and jump and throw our bodies against walls, floors and sides of furniture. When we get older, we're more careful. We slow down and are more timid in our interactions. We rarely get on the floor, or reach for the ceilings. We protect our belongings, our furniture and are careful not to bend, scratch or ruin spaces and surfaces. Paul's images take me back to a time when anything, a floor, a wall, a window were not about cleaning, protecting or 'taking care of', but were for fun and instruments of play. You can see more of Paul's Men At Home series on his website HERE:
