'Nick was not much of a talker, not sure if it was because he is usually not a talkative person, or because I was painting his face (and his entire body), but he surely talked a lot with those deep, beautiful eyes.'
I have been enjoying those deep, beautiful eyes since first seeing Richard Rothstein's work with Nick last fall. As undeniably hot his body is, especially when in motion, it's definitely Nick's eyes that demand the viewers attention. Sultry, knowing and intense, sometimes seeming almost disinterested while at the same... laser focused, staring straight back, meeting, even challenging the the many sets of eyes devouring what's in front of them.
FH readers are well aware of how much I love to explore process. Whenever I am drawn to an image or art piece, I am always curious about it's creation and how all the pieces came together to create the final visual I am enjoying. For some, process is unimportant, the final creation is all that matters. For me however, the final image is more like the last chapter of book, a book I want to explore from the beginning.
Seeing the final artistry of color on Nick's incredible canvas is magnificent. Through his images however, Richard gives us an inside look, a voyeuristic view of the artist at work, and the stages of the body painting process. The artist at work is Heezy Yang, an extraordinary makeup artist, illustrator and photographer from Seoul Korea. Heezy is also one Korea’s most famous drag queens (Hurricane Kimchi) and equal rights
and queer activists and founder of LGBTQIA+ And Allies In Korea.
Richard and Heezy have been collaborating on art projects for about seven years, and when given Heezy as just in New York for a visit, they decided it was time to collaborate on Nick! Richard says this was a new exploration for both of them, and adds that Nick was wonderful, and made the perfect canvas. Heezy began by pouring paint onto Nick's shoulders and allowing it to slide down over Nick's naked body. Heezy then used his brushes to fill in design and detail, finishing with up by completing Nick's face.
The inspiration for design was DJINN, an invisible spirit from Muslim mythology mentioned in the Koran and believed by Muslims to inhabit the earth and influence mankind by appearing in the form of humans or animals. For those in the Western work, DJINN would be close to our devils and demons, evil beings of the spirit world. The term has also made it into Pop Culture, most notably, as part of the series Supernatural.
'Djinn are humanoid creatures with tattooed skin that prefer to live in large ruins with a lot of places to hide. They feed on human blood and can poison their victims with a touch. Their poison causes reality-altering hallucinations and can be used either to kill their victims quickly, or to leave victims in a coma-like state while the Djinn feeds on their blood over a long period of time. Djinn are best classified as genies and are able to read a person's mind to learn their deepest desires.'
When Djinn access their powers, either their eyes glow blue or their tattoos move extend down their arms. Clearly Nick's eyes are glowing blue, and appears to be reading our minds, quickly uncovering our desires. Speaking of glowing blue, you may remember the last time I featured Richard's work with Nick I mentioned there would be a messy ending to shiny satin sheet... Body paint usually washed off skin well, so hopefully Richard will be able to save the sheet! If you want to check out more shots of Richard's and Heezy's artistry with Nick, head on over to THE OVER-FLOW HERE:
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