22 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Luxury: Solitude in Elegant Settings, May 11, 2007
This review is from: Room Service (Hardcover)
Adam Raphael continues to explore the highest plane of sensual male photography with the release of this very elegant, sophisticated book ROOM SERVICE. In his introduction Raphael speaks of his affinity for grand hotels and their prepared lush atmospheres he sees as perfect settings for the privacy of adding his extraordinarily beautiful male models as artistic and erotic accoutrements. For two years he has traveled to some of the most elegant hotels of the world, accompanied by models, and the resulting spontaneous `studios' he finds offer some of the more sensitive, quiet, private views of these carefully selected young men, completely at ease in the solitude of beauty that mirrors their personal gifts: ROOM SERVICE calls upon us to open the door to an amazingly successful portfolio.
This hefty book speaks of eloquence from the size, the cover, the design (courtesy of J. C. Suarés and Paul Perlow), the unique first few pages that open the door to full page views of handsome men before a colophon or words distract the viewer, and the added subtle art pieces by Nina Duran the quietly remind us of the title - room service delivered. And then once inside the `room' there are page after uninterrupted page of full color photographs of thirty-seven masculine, very handsome men, completely at ease with their sole observer Raphael and his camera. The results are warmly sensuous, beautifully composed images of stunning men, nude and partially clothed, asleep in soft white sheets, fresh from the shower with towel, caught in languid poses in briefs, and at times communicating directly with the photographer (and thus, us) with gazes that take the breath away. Raphael continues to avoid full frontal nudity, finding that the hints of the most private aspects of his models are in the end more erotic.
Adam Raphael is a master of understatement and never more so than in this splendid visual monograph. He capitalizes on fantasy, on textures, light and fabric, and on finding a cadre of some of the most wholesomely handsome men ever collected in a photography art book. His attention to detail makes these fine images seem like personal visual communications from men so at ease with their collaborator that each page is a sensual experience shared as a moment with the viewer. This is as fine as art photography of the male nude gets - until Raphael's next inevitable foray! Highly recommended for all audiences. Grady Harp, May 07
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Desire, May 18, 2008
This review is from: Room Service (Hardcover)
Move over Bruce Weber, there's a new shooter in town! Adam Raphael's work is in what I would call the Bruce Weber school, but the student surpases the master in many pictures. This beautifully bound book (that will actually stay open when you lay it flat) is equally suitable for the living room or the bedroom. Adam's work has a quality and depth that will take your breath away, he has included a variety of body types with a concentration on fitness. Included are some of today's most sought after male models including Joseph Sayers, Paul Tornabene, and Evan Wade. If you pine for the Abercrombie & Fitch Quarterlys of yesterday, you'll be more than satisfied with Room Service.
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Amazing, February 24, 2008
This review is from: Room Service (Hardcover)
I've seen lots of photographic art books of the male body, but this one is truly amazing. The lighting is perfect. The color and clarity of the images are crisp and natural. Special praise must be given to the publisher/printer for recreating them in book form.
To say the men are beautiful is an understatement. They make the guys from the old A&F catalog look frumpy in comparison. Two particular models come to mind. One has green eyes that I could lose myself in and never find my way out. Another has the squarest jaw I've ever seen on a human being. The epitome of Scandinavian perfection.
They were all photographed in hotel rooms. The captions for each photo has the model's name along with what room number they were in at the time. I've done only a little traveling in my time, but these hotel rooms represent an order of magnitude of elegance I've never experienced myself.
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