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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Beautif.timeless, calm sepia tone nude portraits of BlackMen,
By A Customer
This review is from: Kalle Pieper: Sango (God in the African Pantheon) (German and English Edition) (Hardcover)
Fine art photography at its best.This is a black and white photo book that shows 60 some pages with portraits of African American men in the nude. It is nothing like the many books with nude photography that show glamour models insinuating that they are available for sex. I found these images to be very personal intimate portraits of real people that nevertheless are very athletic and erotic. The feel of the book is a classic calm mood. Very warm real and respectful. The prints show most of these real Black men in front of dark backdrops in the studio. The light and the print quality is mostly soft and warm. The way the sepia tone is used here really compliments the dark skin tones of the men depicted. It was a pleasure for me to come across a book that is not polished to go after the obvious mass market appeal. The real and warm humane mood of these images where more satisfying than anything I had come across for a long time.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Macho, rugged and real!,
This review is from: Kalle Pieper: Sango (God in the African Pantheon) (German and English Edition) (Hardcover)
There are only 2 reviews for this book at the moment (as I begin writing this). One rates it 5 stars, the other only 1 star. I was wondering how anyone could give this great little book only a single star--and I think I've figured it out.
The 1-star review is by a woman who further reveals her preferences in her review of another black male book, by John Healy. That more artsy book had her "salivating," over men she found to be "handsome," "gorgeous" and "fine-looking specimens." Indeed John Healy's book is about as artistic as one could possibly get in photography. It's a totally different style and presentation from this Kalle Pieper book. I have them both, I love them both. And I can understand why a woman who likes neatness and handsome and gorgeous might be turned off by "specimens" less handsome, more macho, more every-day, regular underwear that may be a little ragged instead of Calvin Klein, and a cheek shot. To each her own. Of course others will prefer the opposite--models that exude sheer black male machismo in every fiber. That's what you get in Kalle Pieper's work. And although these models may be Americans, the entire flavor of the book is that of African countries where Mr. Pieper has spent a great deal of time. If you like an ethnic feel, you'll like this. If you like no pretension, no pretty for pretty's sake, studio yet without studio polish--just the ruggedness of sheer maleness in black--then you'll love this book. I think Ms. S.I.M. misrepresents the 5-star review in saying she disagreed because the pictures didn't look "natural" at all. That reviewer didn't say the models looked "natural." And what seems totally baffling to me is that Healy's book (which she prefers, and which I too love), is the very epitome of polished studio posing, replete with numerous unusual props! Pieper's work would be more like Candid Camera by comparison. I have observed that some people are embarrassed when black people are photographed in less than spectacular settings. Books on tribal Africa, for example, will always be angrily denigrated by some who seem to be embarrassed by the huts or the nudity or the decorative body paint. I don't know whether Ms. S.I.M. is embarrassed by the more pedestrian portrayal of black men in Pieper's work--I don't even know if she's African-American herself (she does say of Healy's work: "I must say you know how to portray 'our' gorgeous Black men"). In any case, there does seem to be something she finds annoying about Pieper that she can't put her finger on--which I say because of her contradictory remarks in the two reviews. Bottom line is, people's tastes differ. And that's okay. She prefers "salivating" over Healy's "gorgeous, handsome, fine-looking specimens," while others will prefer the more rugged, gritty, ethnic machismo of Pieper's work. Personally, I have a broad range of appreciation and give both books a strong 5-star rating. This book is now priced so low it's like stealing to buy it! What an amazing value! .
5 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Totally WACK,
By S.I.M. "LOVE ME or hate me" (Tustin, CA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Kalle Pieper: Sango (God in the African Pantheon) (German and English Edition) (Hardcover)
I totally disagree with the above fore-mentioned review! The pictures did not look "natural" at all. Yesss, they looked posed, and dressed up for exactly that fact: posing for pictures in a studio. They have the repetitive same theme ie... atleast 1 or 2 military clad guys, someone sittin' in a chair, someone on a table. It looked like scenes were thrown together without much thought at all. The underwear w/ holes in them; made me think of uncleanliness, also the same "spreading the cheeks" pose...sigh...come on! I do agree; however, with the sepia tones...nice indeed. The pictures didn't even fill up a whole page. You could of saved $$$ condensing it into a smaller book. Small pictures do not give the effect of life-like. You wanna feel entrapped or look at every detail in a photograph. I'd have to say the best picture to me is of the uncircumsized falace. This could of just been a cheap magazine for $9.95 in an adult book store.
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