Naked
Steel by Günter Blum.
ISBN-10: 1898998159
Within Naked Steel's 140 pages one finds 68 monochromatic images,
printed as blue duo tones, and an introduction by Christopher Peachment.
The photographs are displayed one per page - with the exception of 2 or
3 images that bleed across two pages in a somewhat ill-thought out manner.
The monograph is split into 5 chapters. These chapters are entitled 'Naked
Torsos', 'Amazons', ' Metropolis', 'Full Nudes' and 'Set Pieces'. With the exception of 'Metropolis',
the titles seem somewhat tenuously linked to the images and serve little
purpose but to pad out the volume. Born in Germany in 1949 - Günter
Blum studied graphic design and he initially worked as a freelance painter
and illustrator for magazines, music labels
and publishing houses. After a brief spell teaching he turned late to
photography in 1989 but sadly died in 1997 after succumbing to a serious
illness at the age of 48.
Using
statuesque models who wouldn't be out of place in the work of Helmut Newton
- many claim that Blum developed an unmistakable style but, whilst there
is no denying that it is certainly technically proficient, it appears
no different to that being produced by other artists working within the
fetish genre such as Bob Carlos Clarke. In all honesty, apart from the
Fritz Lang inspired 'Metropolis' series, much of the work within this
volume leaves this reviewer cold.
Review by
Christopher John Ball
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