Bows & Arrows

Unlike most of the weapons in this series, a bow actually demands something from the body. Pull the string and the back widens, the shoulders engage and the torso twists. It's practically a posing device disguised as a weapon. William Ritter draws the bow with his entire body, while dancer Dimitri Vladimiroff turns archery into something considerably less practical—balancing on one leg in a pose that belongs more to the stage than the shooting range.

1. William "Bill" Ritter with bow and arrow, possibly by fellow photographer Max Ewing, c1932. The Ritter brothers took a lot of of self-portraits, but many of their outdoor shots were by their collaborator, Ewing.

2. Dimitri Vladimiroff aka Romanoff in a dance pose with a bow and arrow, possibly taken by Maurice Seymour or Mishkin...both were known to photograph Mikhail Mordkin's or Michel Fokine's dancers from this era - 1930s. Vladimiroff danced for both ballet masters.

Then the archer becomes fantasy. Add a quiver of arrows and we're somewhere between Cupid, classical mythology and the warrior, with Sam Calhoun, Jim Johnson and Bob Anders offering three different versions. Historical accuracy isn't really the point. The bow gives the naked or nearly naked man a role to play.

3. Sam Calhoun with green bow and arrow quiver strap. Calhoun was a California native who moved to Venice Beach at the age of 17 and became part of the Muscle Beach crew of the late 50s to early 60s.

4. Jim Johnson with posing strap and bow and arrow by Bob Mizer in mid 1960s. Notice the little towel he is sitting against.

5. Bob Anders with bow and arrow and quiver by Walter Kunzicz in the mid-1960s. Notice pictures of Dionne Warwick and John Lennon on the wall.

Then we arrive at imagery that hasn't aged nearly as well. Walter Kundzicz photographs Darryl Powers and Monte Hanson in Native American headdresses, turning Indigenous identity into costume for white male fantasy. We've encountered this before in the weapons series, and it's culturally inappropriate.

6. Darryl Powers with bow and quiver full of arrows wearing a theatrical Native American headdress by Bob Mizer c 1961. Powers is clearly a white man and an image like this would never fly today.

7. Monte Hanson also with bow and arrow and headdress by Bob Mizer c 1961. Hanson and Powers were two very popular physique models from this time period who worked with multiple photographers.

Sometimes the bow doesn't need to do much at all. John Tristram and Paul Labriola simply hold theirs, while Rocky Hart's rear three-quarter pose suggests why photographers may have especially liked archers from behind: the bow creates its own curve while the pose exposes the back, waist and buttocks and gives all those muscles something to do.

8. John Tristram holding a bow behind his back by Bruce Bellas c 1958. Tristram won Mr. Venice Beach in 1962.

9. Paul Labriola with bow and arrow by Don Whitman c.1955.

10. Rocky Hart with bow and arrow in what's known as the classical "Apollo" line with deep arching of the lower back, hyper-extended posture, and side profile low focus designed to isolate the lats, glutes, and calves, by Bruce Bellas c 1958. *Side note: there were two classical ideal male physique forms in classic Greek sculpture; the Herculean, which was massive and sometimes included a bearded face, and the Apollolonian ideal, which was more fluid, V-shaped, and lean...without a beard. The Apollo line showed an elongated S-curve in the body, which created a "stomach vacuum" and pronounced chest, glutes, and calves. It also included a strong profile glance that exaggerated the neck muscles. The Apollo line was more about grace and symmetry than strength and power. Bow and arrow shots were perfect for this type of pose.

And one last archer whose identity I haven't established. Naked on the side of a cliff, crouching deeply and pulling hard against the bow, he feels very different from the studio fantasies above. I get an early European physical-culture or naturist feeling from the image, but that's only a hunch. Whoever and wherever he is, he's certainly putting the bow—and his body—to work.

Bonus. Unknown model with bow and arrow. I am unsure but suspect this is a German FKK-related image from the 1910s. Please help confirm or deny. I've gathered that Don Whitman was inspired by images from this era, which is pretty clear from this example.

Please leave thoughts, questions, corrections or additions in the comments. Thank you, bns