'Men and women walked, jogged and rode their bikes along the Boardwalk paying little attention to Josh’s public and very relaxed display of his magnificent birthday suit. That is Coney Island!'
Earlier this month, I featured Richard Rothstein's images of Josh on their early morning trip to Coney Island. (Forever Present) The visual carnival of lights, color and a hot naked model weaved together Richard's magnificent shots captured more than Josh and more than the famous New York theme park. Richard also conjured up universal childhood themes that are so intertwined for many of us, with circus, fair rides and carnivals.
Most of you already know, that I hate to pass up featuring great shots and Richard sent on so many beautiful images from the day, I wanted to feature this series on their own. To begin with, this series features the captivating Josh in a different setting, a short distance from bright lights and noises from the park. It also features the unplanned appearance from a second model, the man in the ocean.
'At one point Josh lounged on the breaker rocks as the rising sun caressed his naked body, just a few feet away from an Hassidic Jew performing a ritual bath in the surf.'
I found the early morning bather such a uniquely Coney Island addition, and an almost mysterious layer of story, I had to feature several images from his swim. He doesn't seem to notice Josh, or the photographer capturing both he and Josh's bodies on the beach. As his descends into the ocean, and swims further and further out into the water, I wonder if he was just dying to turn around, or completely oblivious to the beautiful naked man on the rocks behind him.
