The Photography of Gunter Blum
Night Flowers
T
he
human figure, exposed, the absolute and direct - wrapped in light and shadow -
characterizes the stunning photography of
Gunter Blum
.
Cool, reserved sensuality on the one hand, and expressive body
language on the other, are his artistic means of expression. He
strives to evoke a sense of tension and provocative beauty.
Blum originally achieved acclaim as an illustrator, and later turned to
photography to develop a new means of expressing his ideas.
"Nothing is more laden with controversy and hysteria than the direct presentation of
the nude female body,"
says Blum.
"It isn't trivial lasciviousness, but the styled geometry of sensuality
which gives erotic signals."
As his photos show,
"this is the female body as myth and passion."
His work has been published in a variety of lifestyle and photo magazines in Europe,
and is regularly featured in galleries and museums.
Gunter tells FAD:
"The arranged snapshot tells its story.
Nothing in my work is accidental - everything is planned.
Sometimes it takes many hours or even days to get a perfect shot.
The clothes, the background, everything is built and designed,
just for that one picture that I like to have.
The clothes are made by myself.
They play the same part as a backdrop,
they should fit in that situation I like to have.
"The most important thing is the secret aura. Not to show everything, just to give a space for fantasies.
To awake a new dimension of provocation and the erotic, with few fashionable aspects and just within the
claim to make a classical image.
The photograph should be a visual confrontation with the person who looks at it.
"I
just work with a few good models.
It's important for me to have characters with
self - determination and big expressions.
"I
don't care about fashion.
A lot of the influences here go back to my childhood,
to the variety beauties, the big sexy girls, with the exciting women at the striptease bars in the 50's.
"If
my photography gets the character of a painting, it's successful for me.
I never work with color. I like to reduce to the essential and that's to work in black and white,
the classical instrument of expression.
"Light
and shadow are the elements of my message.
To reduce everything to the real is important.
Nakedness, absolute and direct, wrapped in light and shadow.
The female body as myth, passion and obsession, giving the impression of untouchable and Saint.
"I
don't fit into any rule, my work is my life so I don't care about anything,
just having beautiful pictures."
Barbie, the model, tells FAD:
"I
think I have the perfect body for that kind of photography;
there is nothing in the wrong place. Lots of people ask me if that's real.
"I'm
just playing a role and I'm part of his picture.
But I have to do my best. We work it out together, making a plan and I try to realize his
imagination of that situation.
"The
clothes are made for my figure, sometimes just for one shot.
The fetish aspect is a kind of means to express myself in a different way,
it's like being a showgirl or domina. That's exciting.
"I'm
always impressed what images Gunter makes about me,
how he sees my personality and what is the result of our work."
A book of Blum's photography,
Gunter Blum - AKT
is available through
RyCroft Gallery.
FAD
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As his photos show,
"this is the female body as myth and passion."
His work has been published in a variety of lifestyle and photo magazines in Europe,
and is regularly featured in galleries and museums. 
"The most important thing is the secret aura. Not to show everything, just to give a space for fantasies.
To awake a new dimension of provocation and the erotic, with few fashionable aspects and just within the
claim to make a classical image.
The photograph should be a visual confrontation with the person who looks at it.
"I
just work with a few good models.
It's important for me to have characters with
self - determination and big expressions.
"I
don't care about fashion.
A lot of the influences here go back to my childhood,
to the variety beauties, the big sexy girls, with the exciting women at the striptease bars in the 50's.
"If
my photography gets the character of a painting, it's successful for me.
I never work with color. I like to reduce to the essential and that's to work in black and white,
the classical instrument of expression.
"Light
and shadow are the elements of my message.
To reduce everything to the real is important.
Nakedness, absolute and direct, wrapped in light and shadow.
The female body as myth, passion and obsession, giving the impression of untouchable and Saint.
"I
don't fit into any rule, my work is my life so I don't care about anything,
just having beautiful pictures."
