| ABOUT THE ARTISTS
GEORGE PITTS is Director of Photography
at LIFE Magazine. From 1993-2004, he was the Director of Photography
at Vibe Magazine. He is also a photographer, painter, and writer.
Mr. Pitts photographs have been published in The New York
Times Magazine, New York Magazine, Esquire, Details, Clam, Premiere,
Spin, Talk, Raygun, Paper, Nerve, Manhattan File, Voidek, Werk,
Tally Ho, Stereotype, Gotham, Vice, E Design, Graphics Photo Annual
2000, American Photography, Masterminds of Mode: International Fashion
Festival in Japan, (2000), Nerve: The New Nude, (Chronicle
Books), and an upcoming compilation on human scars, tentatively
entitled, Scars, (Great Britain); and The New Erotic
Photography (Taschen, 2007).
As Director of Photography at Vibe magazine, he received
numerous honors in Photography including The SPD Gold Award in 1994
and 2004; an Alfred Eisenstaedt Award nomination for Photo Essays
in 1998; selection in American Photography volumes 10 -
19; and received three National Magazine Award (ASME) nominations
in Photography: 1994, 1995, and 2001. In 2002, Vibe magazine
received the National Magazine Award (the ASME) in General Excellence
for 2001. In 2006, LIFE magazine was nominated for an ASME for the
Best Celebrity Cover of 2006. In 2006, he was awarded The Lucie
Award for Picture Editor Of The Year for his work with LIFE Magazine.
Mr. Pitts was named one of the nineteen Movers and Shakers for
the Future, (1995) by American Photo magazine. In 1995, he was instated
in the Who's Who Among African Americans edition. In 1999,
he was selected for the IBC (International Biographical Centre,
Cambridge, England), Outstanding People of the 20th Century
volume. In 2001, he served as one of the judges for ICP's Eugene
Smith Award in Photojournalism, and was on the Nominating Board
for ICP's 2001, Infinity Awards in Photography. In 1973 he was a
Fulbright Recipient to Great Britain in Painting. In 1972 he received
The Painting 1st Prize at The Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture.
Mr. Pitts also teaches courses entitled Picturing Sexuality, and
The Senior Thesis Seminar, at The Parsons School of Design. He has
also taught at The School of Visual Arts.
ALVA BERNADINE was born in Grenada, West Indies and
moved to Britain at the age of 6 to London. At the age of 10 Alva
bought a toy camera that took blurred pictures, some of which his
mother still has in the family album.
Alva became seriously interested in photography at the age of
21. Alva's first pictures were of London tourist spots and the next
year Alva started practicing his present style. Alva is self-taught
and has never been an assistant.
Alva has worked mainly in the editorial field for the last 18
years. Alva has photographed for numerous magazines and has had
many profiles of his work in countries such as France, Spain, Italy,
USA, Australia, Germany and, his home country, Great Britain.
In 1987, Alva was joint winner the Vogue/Sotheby's Cecil Beaton
Award for his series of shoe pictures entitled The Fetish.
In 2001 his book Bernadinism: How to Dominate Men and Subjugate
Women was published. In 2002, Alva won Erotic Photographer
of the year in Britain.
BELASCO currently lives in Los Angeles. Belasco began
creating erotic art in the early 1990's for various club rags and
small press publications. He went on to create chapbooks featuring
erotic stories and paint the covers for the first three books in the
B-Boy Blues series of novels by James Earl Hardy. In the later
part of 1997, Belasco's work was included in the Meatmen
anthologies from Leyland Press. In 2000, Cleis press released a collection
of Belasco's work in The Brothers of New Essex. Since then
Belasco continues to create original artwork and publish his own brand
of afro-homo-erotic illustrations and stories.
JOHN HOWARD was born in Austin, Texas in 1962.
Howard went to the University of Kentucky from 1982- 1985.
Howard is the gonzo cartoonist of choice for the rowdier adult magazines
of America, like Buttman, Screw, and Hustler.
Howard is legend in the counterculture comic world. and is the man
behind the Horny Bikers Slut comic series, which featured
various amped Amazons. muscle-bound native American's in bikinis
and she-males with attitude.
Howard recently branched out into adult video directing, with titles
like Tales from the Crack, (a live action pop art version
of the comic starring Belladonna) and Vault of Whores.
In his films, Howard merges comic panels into live scenarios, proving
there's life in the comic book genre yet.
Some of Howard's comics include - Leaping Weasel, Deathman,
Horny Biker Slut and She-Male Trouble.
CURATOR
CARLOS BATTS wears many hats very well; photographer, filmmaker,
curator. Over the past 15 years he as taken the DIY mantra to heart
documenting a variety of sophisticated subcultures; music, life
style and art. Painter, stylist, make up artist, and set designer
have all been titles he has carried through out the creation of
his vast body of work. Carols has honed and refined his artistic
sensibilities into a balanced mosaic of high fashion and photo-collages
that encompass his entire vision.?
Among an ever-expanding universe of other forums in addition to
photography, Batts has directed short films, and curated? Street
Art exhibits by the likes of Mike GIANT, Rich Colman, Kime Buzelli,
Axis, Chris Lindig and Photography exhibits by Chris Haston, Steve
Diet Goedde, Dave Naz, Patrick Hoelck, Rick Castro, Estavan Oriel,
and Andres Serrano.
Batts is a contributor to these magazines: Swindle, WARP
(Japan), Vibe, Maxim, URB, WYWS, Garage (Italy). Clientele:
NBC, WB Television, Shoes, NBC, Digi Design, Sky Spirits, Ballantine
Books, DC Comics, AGFA Film, Calee Clothing (Japan), Third Rail
Clothing, Fleer Trading Cards, Century Media Records, New Line Cinema,
Warner Brothers, Abacus Records, Relapse Records and Reptilian Records.
Musical artists photographed: Danzig, Snoop Dog, Mark Mothersbaugh,
DJ QUIK, AFROBOTS, Radiation 4, City High, Crystal Method, Z TRIP,
Ozomatli, Ginuwine, The Distillers, Pig Destroyer, godHead, Ink
& Dagger, The Dwarves, LABTEKWON, Dog Fashion Disco, Nikka Costa,
Nebula, AWOL ONE, ONE BLOCK RADIUS and Mastodon.
RICK CASTRO is an independent filmmaker and photographer.
Castro's work explores the world of fetish and fringes of sex culture.
His work has been published in artist editions, exhibitions and
institutions worldwide. Rick co-directed and wrote Hustler White
and the documentary Plushies & Furries for MTV.
Castro's photography is in the permanent collections of The Alfred
Kinsey Institute and The Tom of Finland Foundation. His books and
zines are archived at the UCLA library, and The Leather Museum in
Chicago. Castro has photographed portraits of the Dalai Lama (sipping
tea), Gore Vidal, Peter Berlin, Alan Poul (producer of Six Feet
Under) and his longtime muse, Tony Ward. Castro owns and runs
Antebellum Gallery.
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