Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1662666 in Books
• Published on: 2005-10-30
• Original language: German, English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 288 pages

Customer Reviews

Elegant and gently erotic
Karsten is the current master of his art. That is B&W nude photography, the kind that ranges from portraiture to lightly erotic images. True to the title, the subjects are all women, mostly twentyish (with some striking diplays of more mature beauty), mostly thin, and mostly European in features and coloring (again, with a few lovely examples that widen the palette of skin tones).

A few words just can't sum up these dozens of models and 250+ pages of imagery. The dust-jacket photo (Denise and Janet) shows one part of the range: soft curves, a distant mood, and gentle, ambiguous affection between the two women. The actual cover and the start of the main collection of photos gives a very different sense: Tania has slim hips and bust, boyish hair, and a strongly defined face. Her angular charm and direct involvement with the camera, even when faced away from it, create an enjoyable contrast.

The contrasts continue: some models display broad tattoos, others are variously pierced, sprinkled with freckles and such (like Carola), or adorned all over by nature (e.g. Bina, Judy, and Amanda), when compared to light-skinned trend of the other models.

If I had to pick favorites among these photos, they'd be some of the shots of couples. They range from the merely adjacent (Kirsten and Sandra or Stefanie and Sarah), through many degrees of closeness (including Aniko and Ragna or Mira and Alex), to the overtly sapphic (Chris and Conny or Carola and Juliane). Others (such as Emina or Katja) remind the viewer that sexuality is innate to the woman, not necessarily dependent on her company. Karsten's artistry is in capturing this warm erotism as part of the woman herself, not as a crass artifice imposed on her for the viewer's benefit. That's really what separates Karsten from lesser photographers of physical pleasures: his genuine respect for his models, even love in a few cases. It's what keeps me coming back to his beautiful collections.

//wiredweird