Photograph of gustave courtois dedicated to maurice deriaz ,1910. Eduardo febles in "gustave courtois in the paris salon" writes: "a recently discovered 1910 photograph of courtois standing next to deriaz’ portrait is dedicated to the strongman in the following way: 'to maurice de riaz, a souvenir of his painter and friend, gustave courtois. ' it is telling that the artist chose to call him 'friend' and to stage a photograph with erotic undercurrents. The pose of the artist is suggestive of sexual prowess, the phallic maulstick pressed firmly against the pelvic girdle, creating a bulge in the front of the pants and directing the gaze of the recipient of the photograph—in this instance, deriaz—toward the crotch. Furthermore, courtois deliberately chooses to stand between the portrait of maurice on his right and a lost work of 1904 representing apollo playing the lyre on his left. As we know, apollo’s exploits include many forays into same-sex love. Hidden from view by courtois’ body is an image of a young boy playing the flute, perhaps an allusion to cyparissus, the beloved of apollo. Given the 33-year age difference between courtois and deriaz and the positioning of the paintings, the “unspeakable” vice of the greeks inhabits the staging of the photograph. [1]. Date: 1910.
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