Thursday, July 8, 2010

High

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  1. This portrait comes from a short series with the same model in the same classic attire in the same classic chair, and is possibly not one's own favourite from that cycle. But what it has in common with many works of the last few years, is its recollection and adaptation of classic seating designs of the previous century, ranging from Hicks' use of Breuer's Wassily chair with the model "TJ" at menmagazine dot com, to widespread use of Le Corbusier's chaise longue (Kristofer Ryan, anyone?) and Mies van der Rohe's sleek couch from the Barcelona Pavilion (Reese, eat your heart out).

    With this cycle I think Goudon hit a mark the others have not reached (and possibly didn't strive for), of truly "nailing" a structural feature of a chair with a structural element of the model. Here, beyond any doubt, is one of the great "legs" celebrations in circulation today, whose delineation owes everything to the resiliency of the muscle groups under suspension from the furniture, in one of the most inevitable enjoyments of its comfort. By no means, I admit, is this the extent of this image's charm and manifold moral satisfactions. It is, however, thrilling, as a fulfillment of the architecture of this classic chair, and it is a masterpiece on how endlessly gifted the male body is in achieving repose with electrifying gorgeousness.

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