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As a social reformer, Jeremy Bentham was the shit. He was, according to Wikipedia, “in favour of individual and economic freedom, the separation of church and state, freedom of expression, equal rights for women, the end of slavery, the abolition of physical punishment (including that of children), the right to divorce, free trade, usury, and the decriminalization of homosexual acts. He also made two distinct attempts during his life to critique the death penalty”.

If that weren’t achievement in awesomeness enough, the man donated his body to science then had himself stuffed with hay for display. His own, real head was, for a time, on display below his body (it was unable to be permanently attached to the body) but it was the source of too many college pranks to remain accessible.

While the name Jeremy Bentham is familiar to those familiar with Lost (it’s the name Locke traveled under after leaving the island) I was actually introduced to the man, his philosophies and his unique after death requests through a philosophy lecture that aired on PBS.

See more: Style Icons: Male Activists Historical Politicians

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Posted on January 17, 2010

Spank Bank Fantasy Art

Fantasy art with a sexual bent (flying centaurs copulating mid air; mermaids doing it underwater): there’s lots to love about Boris Vallejo. I’ve been sharing some of his art with the world over at Rotating Corpse with “Your Daily Boris” which I believe may have single handedly flagged my site as not safe for work, getting it blocked by my office servers. But man, is it worth it. His own site also has an extensive image gallery along with the work of his wife Julie Bell. If you’re already a fan or especially if you’re not aware of his work, make sure to head over there or check in with RC for my on going series.

See more: Style Icons: Male Artists

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Posted on December 26, 2009

Art Director of Wiemar Cinema

After a series of all day meetings, tucked into my hotel bed, I found the perfect time (I could only manage to stay awake for a little over an hour) and mental place (I didn’t want to hear any one talk for a while) to watch the silent expressionist classic, The Cabinent of Dr. Caligari.

Regarded as a true masterpiece, the film boasts an incredible set design care of one Hermann Warm, who’s famous manifest states “the cinema image must become an engraving.”

Warm’s other achievements include The Passion of Joan of Arc, and a moody favorite of mine, Vampyr. Below/after the jump see stills from both Caligari and Vampyr.

Click here for the rest of Hermann Warm

See more: Style Icons: Male Designers Directors

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Posted on December 13, 2009

Couturiers

It would have been quite impossible not to choose Valentino and his partner Giancarlo Giammetti as this week’s style icons after watching Valentino: The Last Emperor. Their career and legacy of making beautiful couturier clothes for exquisite women speaks for itself.

Click here for the rest of Valentino and Giancarlo Giammetti

See more: Style Icons: Male Designers

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Posted on November 22, 2009

Here's what I had to say on January 15th:

It's really crazy that I've neglected to honor Frank Frazetta here before. He, along with Vogue Magazine, Cyndi Lauper, The Talking Heads and Manhattan Transfer were the biggest influences on me as a really young kid. Frazetta's work particularly helped shape my aesthetics and love for the Dungeon and Dragons side of life.

I use to pore over books of Frazetta's amazing art with my dad in the basement, dreaming about sitting atop dangerous hilltops, surrounded by goblins, looking sexy and hardcore in a metal bikini (which also inspired the design of Princess Leia's famous costume). I would watch the movie Fire and Ice over and over again (one of the first movies I ever recommended here) and even to this day, I wear his artwork almost daily on my back.

He was largely successful as a commercial artist, doing work for movies like The Gauntlet, The Fearless Vampire Killers, and Mad Max, and album art for bands like Molly Hatchet (another prized possession is my tour t-shirt with his Flirtin' with Disaster art on it). Of course, now he's finally respected as an artist and his work sells for thousands (which is why I'll have to settle for tee shirts and patches until my ship comes in).

He grew up in Brooklyn, and according Wikipedia, “attributes much of the violence and brutality of his later paintings to his actual experiences as a young man defending himself from the street gangs of Brooklyn”. Another interesting and exciting fact is that he and his family run a small museum on their estate in Pennsylvania –? museum that I will of course be going to once it re-opens in May.

I really adore and admire Frazetta, possibly more than any other living artist. I thank my dad for introducing him to me and I hope that maybe I can introduce his work to the few people reading this blog that aren't already familiar with it – and I'm thankful that he's been so prolific over the years.

RUNNERS UP:
Queen
Irving Penn
The Cockettes
Jim Rumph
Garrett Brown
The Hanson Brothers

See more: Style Icons: Male Artists Best of Fantasy

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Posted on November 2, 2009