Customer Reviews

Suburban Pleasures

5 star:		(7)
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Mark Henderson has outdone himself. The beautiful colors, bodies, lighting, settings... a joy. The large, thick pages with subtle matte finish enhance these clean, simple portraits. A wonderful addition to our art library. Thanks for inviting us into your home, Mr. Henderson.

PLEASURES abound in this second book offering of beautiful men and beautiful muscle by Mark Henderson. I thought his first book HOUSEHOLD had every color of the rainbow in it - I see this book has a few more new colors and hues that make the eyes even brighter. There are a couple of men in this book that are even intimate and real and VIBRANT ! Thank you Henderson for this wonderful new view into your world of masculine virility in color and form

Just the cover alone would have had me buying this book. It is not cheap, so I waited a bit. Finally got it at a nice price.
Now that I have the book, I should have bought it sooner.
Holy moly merde Louise!
I almost blushed...almost. The images in this book are fantastic and the photographer will now go on my watch list.
Great sets true to the book's title and wardrobe (minmal is good) that all compliment the noteworthy models and almost always make the shot even more intense.
This book moves to the top of my list which includes works by Mapplethorpe and Weber.
HOT.

When I saw Mark's first book I was amazed and pleased for my friend. He created an incredible piece of art! Everything about it is eyecatching and simply wonderful. So when he told me he was going to do a second book, I said to myself, "sure, it will be good of course but he can never match his first book, Household Idols". Well, I am pleased to say he not only matched that book but when 3 steps beyond. Being a photographer myself I look at Suburban Pleasures and am both amazed and of course, jealous. Jealous in that I wish I had the vision, talent and patience to produce such an incredible work of art.
I was checking every photograph in the book for something I could pick apart, came up with nothing. Us photographers love to look at another photographer's images and critique them for good or bad. I know in my case I have taken some bad pictures, hopefully they have all magically disappeared, lol...
I really think and believe that good photography should inspire others, either as a viewer or as a photographer. I know that looking at Mark's images as well as other photographers that I admire, it has changed the way I see people in front of my camera and hopefully makes a difference for the better.

Thanks Mark for making us photographers work harder and for everyone else to make their day a little more interesting and inspiring

John Hough

Mark Henderson is an acknowledged art history authority, which may be a major contributing factor to the inordinately artistic bent of his images. His first book, HOUSEHOLD IDOLS, resulted from his photographic work in his home in Los Angeles. For his second monograph, SUBURBAN PLEASURES, Henderson set up his camera and magic eye in his secondary home in Texas. The difference in atmosphere is palpable. Gone are the opulent settings of decorative furnishings that served as backdrops for his male models: instead here are open sun-filled rooms, spare in furnishings as though the men of note are the primary focus.

As we now are able to better evaluate mark Henderson's art, with two separate monographs to compare and enlarge his visionary output, it becomes even more obvious how much color appeals to his retina - almost as much as the very buff, striking models that grace these images. He is unafraid to place a very masculine model in the presence of hot pick throws or the same color stockings, seat a nude on a an electric blue backed bench with garish chartreuse tennis balls, the natural greens and blues of a swimming pool are balanced with swimwear that mirrors the color (or is conspicuously absent!), place a particularly striking Asian model in the geometry of a well appointed yet spare kitchen or simply seated in a black and white corner sporting brilliant red sport shoes, or use the beauty of reflecting gym mirrors to capture as much of a well-appointed model as possible!

If some of the photographs seem contrived or too studied or posed, then that is in the tradition of classical still life, and with Henderson's background known, we can rest assured he is in control of his manipulation of both his subjects and his selection of environment. This is a handsome book of handsome men in a beautifully designed production from Bruno Gmünder Verlag. it is spicy, seductive, and of the highest quality of photography reproduction. Grady Harp, May 10

Wow!...This is a magnificent, full course manfeast of nudity that begs to be served on your coffee table! Every delicious page of Mark Henderson's beautiful book will leave you hungry for the next. A must-have for your personal collection or holiday gifting. Warning: Just be sure you keep your 'dining rag' handy for the variety of mouth-watering delights!

This book was certainly a pleasure to look at. I previously purchased The Ready to Play: Men at Play book, which ignited my interest to get this book. This is a great book that provides visual delights of men that are eye candy. One of the male models from the Ready to Play book is also featured in some photos in the Suburban Pleasures book. Obviously, I enjoyed this book because I find all the men featured in it very handsome and pleasant to look at. However, what definitely increased this book's value as a worthwhile purchase to me was the variety of men that were featured(different hair colors, eye colors, and body types). There are a wide range of men featured in this book that touch on the frequently used statement "there is something for everyone". I love how the pictures of the men were taken in various parts of the house (such as in front of the kitchen fridge, another male model holding a camera as he leans up against the window blinds, and someone simulating the ironing of the clothes). I have only listed an exciting sampler of the many interesting "room shots" featured. There are so many good poses featured that I too wish that this book was longer. One of the poses that really stood out for me in a good way was the picture where one of the models is holding a glass of milk, and appears to be tugging at his shirt. The "milk shot" is only one of many eye treats available in the book. You are going to enjoy "Suburban Pleasures" if you enjoyed the book "Ready to Play" and/or you have a strong appreciation for the male body.