Surfboards

“I feel it in the air, the summer's out of reach.” Don Henley's line from The Boys of Summer seems about right this week. Summer is winding down, so I'm leaving my handheld props behind and heading to the beach—and few objects bring their own male fantasy quite as efficiently as a surfboard.

1. Byron Hawkwood by Colt aka Jim French in the late 70s to early 80s.  Hawkwood only did still images though this period marked the beginnings of Colt moving to more video work. Some called him the live embodiment of the Tom of Finland aesthetic.

2. Steven Landen for Playgirl - May 1977. He was the centerfold in that issue.

3. Angelo "Angie" Reno by Stephen Wilkings for Playgirl June 1974.

 

The surfer is a type I haven't talked much about here: tanned, athletic, shaggy-haired and seemingly without much responsibility beyond finding the next wave. Not necessarily a hippie—more the carefree guy who can't be bothered to cut his hair. He became a familiar character in gay photography and porn, and today's skater may be his more urban cousin.

4. Fred Barnes by Bob Mizer taken in Mizer's pool or "backyard beach" at his studio compound at 1316 Figuera St in L.A. in the late 50s to early 60s. Some historians consider Barnes an important turning point in Mizer's career as he marks a shift toward more rugged, hairy, and natural athletic aesthetic.

5. Steve Espie by Bob Mizer during same time period as #4 above. Espie represented another body-type shift toward the "natural" man...the boy next door.

 

There's also something about the surfboard that encourages photographers to turn the model around. Maybe it's simply the logic of surfing: carry the board toward the water, lie across it, straddle it and paddle away. Whatever the reason, we get an awful lot of backs and backsides. I've always appreciated that view myself—the naked man and his board facing the ocean, looking for the next big wave.

6. James Grimes waxing his board in his jockstrap by Bob Mizer who did far fewer destination photoshoots than he did at his compound as he was reportedly agoraphobic and very protective of his schedule.

7. Paul Strand sunbathing on his board for Young Guys magazine June/July 1975.

8. Avery Heath by Bob Mizer mid-to-late 70s. Avery marked yet another aesthetic shift for Mizer toward more "natural" men during this period..."the skater or surfer boy."

9. Avery Heath in bulldog pose by Bob Mizer.  Why??  We can only imagine.

 

Eventually we leave the ocean altogether. At Mizer's pool the board still suggests California sun and surf. By the final studio photograph, even the water is gone. The surfboard has become exactly what the swords, ropes and whips were: a prop telling us what kind of man we're supposed to imagine.

10. Joseph Pallister in a studio shot with sand, beach towel, surfboard and 'wet' hair for Playgirl May 1990...past mid-century, but showing the surfboard theme enduring.

 

“I can see you, your tan skin shining in the sun...after the boys of summer have gone.” 

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