The Hunky Hungarian: Gabor Tarjani by Pierre-Yves Monnerville

'Gabor's not sure whether he is a bit of an exhibitionist but he is ever so comfortable erect, gets hard on demand and even finds flattering that men fantasize over his body. What more to ask from a model?'

Pierre-Yves Monnerville

Timing can often be a great thing. Earlier this month, as part of my FH Flashback, I featured an image of model Kane O'Farrell by Pierre-Yves Monnerville. Revisiting the London based photographer' work had me deciding it was time to get in contact with him about a FH return. I first contacted model Gabor Tarjani last November after seeing an image of him sitting in the corner of a dirt basement blind folded and naked. The image had level of risky eroticism that had me wanting to learn more about the beautiful Hungarian model.

I needed to get back in touch with Gabor about image choices. But.. before I was able to, and before I could contact Pierre-Yves, he contacted me, with images from a shoot he had done the previous weekend, with Gabor. Pierre had seen Gabor on Model Mayhem as well and they arranged to get together for a shoot in Brighton. Although originally from Hungary, Gabor is currently living and working in the UK. In his e-mail to me, Pierre described Gabor as a 'hunky Hungarian' and I instantly thought it sounded like a good title for the piece. A bit of research however had me learning 'hunky' is not a compliment in Hungary, and has been used as an insult and even as contempt. In this case however, I am using the American definition, and the word, and definition. compliments the strong and sexy Gabor perfectly.

Gabor dipped his toes into modeling when he was in his twenties, working as model, in his clothes, for advertising for local businesses. He didn't model again until last year when a local photographer whose image Gabor 'liked' on facebook asked him about doing some modeling for him, this time without clothes. That photographer, Bluewall was the artist who shot the image of Gabor in basement that first had me reaching out to Gabor. This led to other photographer's discovering Gabor's considerable assets and setting up shoots.

'Pierre saw my uploaded photos and invited me for a shoot. He's a kind and very nice photographer. It was pleasure with working with him. It was a first studio shoot for me. I really enjoyed it. He was incredibly professional and we discussed getting together again in the summer for an outside shoot. I'm a nudist and feel great being naked both inside or outside!'

Gabor Tarjani

I always love to ask photographers about interesting stories about the shoots. Pierre and Gabor spent a lot of time talking during the shoot and the photographer shared how not only how open minded Gabor was, but how completely comfortable he was being naked during the shoot. Even more than comfortable, Pierre-Yves shared how much Gabor enjoys being naked.

'Gabor's a hunky, Hungarian straight 43 year-old based in Jersey, Channel Islands. I really can’t believe how open minded he is. We talked a lot about his motivations as a model over the weekend and Gabor was saying that he’s always curious to discover how photographers see him. He’s not sure whether he is a bit of an exhibitionist but he is ever so comfortable erect, gets hard on demand and even finds flattering that men fantasize over his body. What more to ask from a model?'

Pierre-Yves Monnerville

Gabor Tarjani on ModelMayhem

studio-monnerville

studio-monnerville on ModelMayhem

Marseilles: Bryan Feray by Pierre-Yves Monnerville

Marseille is France's second largest city after Paris. The city enjoys a Mediterranean climate, with it's summer lasting over six months from late April through October. Marseille is France's largest commercial port and largest French city on the Mediterranean coast. The costal city is also the home of 22 year old model Bryan Feray.



Bryan is a model I have wanted to feature on FH for some time. Bryan has a great look, strong, confident and a body and face beyond sexy. Photographer Pierre-Yves Monnerville (whom I first profiled this past May in Solitary Man: by Pierre-Yves Monnerville) recently had the opportunity to capture the the model on a beach in Marseilles and as you can see the results are breath taking!



Bryan lives in Marseilles and I was due to spend 2 days in Nice. I was browsing Model Mayhem to see who was around the area and came across Bryan's impressive profile. After the 1st contact he said that if I arranged his transport he could meet me anywhere. I ended up going to Marseilles though!

Those photos were shot on a nudist beach in Marseilles where Bryan usually goes to sunbathe. Bryan is straight but obviously very open minded and incredibly mature. You can tell he's been through a lot. He told me: "thank god for gay photographers. Nobody would bother taking photos of men otherwise!".
Pierre-Yves Monnerville



Thanks To Pierre-Yves for sharing this amazing set with FH. Bryan Feray, a french beach, the rocks the ocean and the work of Pierre-Yves Monnerville. If anyone needed another reason to book a ticket to Marseilles these shots should do it!

Check out Photo-Monnerville on his official site HERE:
Check out Bryan Feray on MM HERE: & on his facebook fan page HERE:

Missing Chapters: Gareth by Pierre-Yves Monnerville

'The texts are an attempt to go beyond pleasing the eye and share or confront experiences or point of view on sexuality, homosexuality, relationships, self confidence, growing older, loneliness...'

Pierre-Yves Monnerville

The quote above comes from the description to Pierre-Yves Monnerville's 2009 book Diaries. Pierre's quote resonated with me as in many ways, it sums up the motivation behind FH. At heart I am a writer, and telling the stories behind the images I feature is what stimulates my interest in the men in front of, and behind the camera.

There is nothing wrong of course with enjoying an image solely based on the visual. Art is about the artist telling a story through their work. For me however, an images is like the front cover of a book. Sometimes the cover is enough, I glace, enjoy the visual and then move on. Other times however, with the images I feature on FH, the cover has me curious to investigate and find out more about the stories behind the cover's creation.

With the subject being art, and the male form, the stories frequently stem from creative concepts, often accompanied by interesting, funny, and frequently arousing and even erotically stimulating tales of the process. As humans, we all have stories, most however do, and should, remain untold. Many of the photographers and models I have interviewed have included stories 'off the record' tales that they would rather not have made public. As a writer, it can be frustrating at times telling an 'incomplete' story, one with chapters that have to be left out of the manuscript and final final published piece.

As soon as I saw Pierre's images of Gareth (mr nice), I sensed there was a story to tell. There seemed a bit of a disconnect between his big beautiful muscled body, and the emotions flowing from his wide blue eyes. Sadly, I can only share the images, and part of the story as Pierre shared that Gareth died a few years back.

This shoot was from 2008. Gareth was a straight bodybuilder, but dabbled in nude shoots and solo videos to help support and finance his training. Pierre describes Gareth as being being very quiet and reserved during their shoots. Professional and business like, Gareth was willing to try anything that might work, yet at the same time rarely showed interest in the final outcome. Gareth did however seem genuinely happy with working with Pierre and the completed photos, but again, from a business perspective.

The connection between body building and nude modeling is a natural one. You spend so many hours working out and in the gym to achieve results. The end goal, to show off your body to both judges and the public at a competition. Pierre always had the feeling that Gareth wasn't totally comfortable with the homo-erotic aspect of some of the work and videos he was doing. Gareth considered it part of what he needed to do in order to continue bodybuilding professionally.

I would love to have been able to follow Gareth's story beyond this mid-point in his life and career. Many people in their thirties, struggle with their career, and spend countless hours trying to figure out how they want to spend the rest of their lives. My guess, or maybe more, my hope is, that like most of us, within a few years things would have settled and Gareth would be on the path he desired. Although Gareth sadly had many missing chapters, for this piece, Pierre's words about one of their final shoots, seems an appropriate last chapter for this piece.

'I shot these images of Gareth as part of my Men in the Dark series. The series was motivated by my annoyance at how most people reacted to the photos I showed. Most people seemed only interested in whether they found the models attractive, how muscly the guy was or the size of his cock… I tried to make those men generic so to speak.'

Pierre-Yves Monnerville

Pierre-Yves Monnerville on ModelMayhem

Pierre-Yves Monnerville: Unapologaytic

'Photography has always been my first love- it's how I express myself and my love of the male form.  The St. Sebastian project has been in my mind for almost 20 years...'

Pierre-Yves Monnerville

Many FH readers are familiar with the work of Pierre-Yves Monnerville, I've been fortunate to have featured the photographer's work several time on the site over the last 12 years. (HERE:)  Some of you may also know that the French Caribbean artist expanded his work to Act Straight,  a line of clothing and merchandise made specifically for gay men.  Although the pandemic slowed down Pierre's ability to shoot, it didn't dampen his desire to create

Over the last several years, Pierre has expanded his concept, and his message from T-shirts and clothing to and online zine.  St Sebastian, the martyr who fearlessly stood up to a Roman emperor, inspired both the latest Unapologaytic T-shirt design and new online zine issue.   Unapologaytic rewrites the story of a Gay Icon to inspire the community Brighton based award winning gay brand Unapologaytic to celebrate LGBTQ history with an original shoot inspired by St Sebastian, the gay icon who’s been inspiring artists and painters for centuries. 

Unapologaytic's representation of St Sebastian is a modern take on the traditional depiction of the martyr. Instead of a helpless victim, Unapologaytic's version of Sebastian shows him as a fighter - a symbol of strength and defiance in response to the current anti-LGBTQ backlash.   In the new Unapologayzine, St Sebastian is depicted defending himself and even fighting back against his oppressor.  The new shoot featuring models Jae, (St. Sebastian) and Alejandro. (the oppressor) Check it out HERE:

Unapologaytic

Pierre-Yves Monnerville

Pierre-Yves Monnerville on FH:

Solitary Man: Kane O'Farrell by Pierre-Yves Monnerville

'No matter how close I am to people or love them, I sometimes find it quite hard to connect with them. I see some friends I really adore in so much pain that I’d like to take some of it from them.'



'Of course we all know how it works. Or, do we?

When I’m myself in pain, whether emotionally or physically, the people close to me try really hard to help but it’s always pointless to me. It’s good for my morale to know that there are people around caring about me but at the end of the day, that doesn't take the pain or worry away.'
Loneliness
by Pierre-Yves Monnerville




One of my favorite parts of artist Pierre-Yves Monnerville's website is a section titled diaries. With FH one of the things I strive to do is tell stories along with the work I showcase. The poem above, 'Loneliness' did not originally go with these incredible shots of Kane O'Farrell, but it was my favorite diary, and also fits with the Solitary feel I get from Pierre's work.



When I say Solitary I don't mean alone. Dating, relationships and sex are all apart of Pierre's work and his stories. Ultimately though, solitary means independence, inner strength and self reliance which are all a part of the power in the images. Pierre photographs strong, sexy, reflective solitary men.



Pierre-Yves is from the French island of Martinique and now lives and works in Brighton England. His images, as well as his words, are an exploration of intimacy. Robert Mapplethorpe's 1988's Black Book, was a main inspiration for entering the world of photography. Pierre has showcased his work in several books including Diaries (which features Loneliness). You can find out more about his work, his books, and view more of his photography at his official site HERE:



I am hit and miss on tattoo's. Sometimes I feel they take away from a model and a body. Sometimes, they add something unique and highly sensual. With Kane O'Farrell it is most certainly the latter. Kane's tattoo's are not so much on him, but more a part of him. Pierre's shots of Kane were some of my favorite in his portfolio, and I especially loved the shots of Kane on the floor (seen below).



'The inspiration for the photos with Kane was old physique magazines of the 70s. I'm a big fan of Colt magazine and we started from some of the very first drawings of Rip Colt. I also like including light elements in my photos so I hired this LED seat usually used in clubs to see what we could do with it.'
-Pierre-Yves Monnerville-