tlashop.com

Grady Harp wrote on 06/26/2011:

Mark Henderson is an acknowledged art history authority, which may be a major contributing factor to the inordinately artistic bent of his images. His first book, HOUSEHOLD IDOLS, resulted from his photographic work in his home in Los Angeles. For his second monograph, SUBURBAN PLEASURES, Henderson set up his camera and magic eye in his secondary home in Texas. The difference in atmosphere is palpable. Gone are the opulent settings of decorative furnishings that served as backdrops for his male models: instead here are open sun-filled rooms, spare in furnishings as though the men of note are the primary focus.

As we now are able to better evaluate mark Henderson's art, with two separate monographs to compare and enlarge his visionary output, it becomes even more obvious how much color appeals to his retina - almost as much as the very buff, striking models that grace these images. He is unafraid to place a very masculine model in the presence of hot pick throws or the same color stockings, seat a nude on a an electric blue backed bench with garish chartreuse tennis balls, the natural greens and blues of a swimming pool are balanced with swimwear that mirrors the color (or is conspicuously absent!), place a particularly striking Asian model in the geometry of a well appointed yet spare kitchen or simply seated in a black and white corner sporting brilliant red sport shoes, or use the beauty of reflecting gym mirrors to capture as much of a well-appointed model as possible!

If some of the photographs seem contrived or too studied or posed, then that is in the tradition of classical still life, and with Henderson's background known, we can rest assured he is in control of his manipulation of both his subjects and his selection of environment. This is a handsome book of handsome men in a beautifully designed production from Bruno Gmünder Verlag. it is spicy, seductive, and of the highest quality of photography reproduction.