The Art of Cavelo
These two have long been among my favourites pieces of erotic slave art by the artist, Cavelo. They portray two of my favourite fantasies and they have always "excited" me to such an extent that I keep returning to them for stimulation and inspiration for my own story writing.
Who among those of us who owns a slave's nature hasn't fantasised about being the subjects so erotically displayed in these two works. Who among us hasn't imagined himself as a naked and shackled captive being offered for sale in an Arab slave-market and who hasn't thought about being a naked galley-slave labouring and sweating at the oar of a Spanish or Moorish galley under the cruel whips of our slave-drivers.
I know I have - many times!
Cavelo knows his male anatomy and his renderings of naked males - usually slaves or prisoners undergoing torture - are second to none and serve to arouse both the masochist and sadist.
From my perspective, what makes Cavelo's art outstanding is that they are rendered in black and white and his use of light and shade to emphasise the male physique and the stressed musculature of his slaves/victims make them true works of art.
If I remember correctly, some time ago another "artist" took it upon himself to "colourise" some of Cavelo's - and others - works and I remember thinking how colour detracted from the impact of them.
Sadly, Cavelo's stories are now hard to find and I know these two were use to illustrate two of his stories. Luckily, I had saved the art but sadly, not the stories in my files some years ago.
From memory, Cavelo specialised in historical works which dealt with ancient Rome, the Saracens and the Spanish Inquisition. His interpretations of Roman crucifixions are outstanding in their portrayal of the utter brutality of such an appalling form of execution for a slave.
Recently, I mentioned another artist, Etienne. How fortunate we are to have such artists as Cavelo and Etienne who add so much of interest to our Master/slave genre.
Chris
After the art of Etienne, it’s really very opportune that you recall here also the splendid artistic activity of the great Cavelo.
ReplyDeleteYou are perfectly right, Chris, in all the things that you underline about Cavelo’s art.
For example, his “knowledge of male anatomy and his renderings of naked males” is simply extraordinary; and his drawings are certainly able of “arousing both the masochist and sadist”.
This is why e.g. let me say that not just “slaves” have “ IMAGINED THEMSELVES AS NAKED AND SHACKLED CAPTIVES BEING OFFERED FOR SALE IN AN ARAB SLAVE-MARKET AND HAVE THOUGHT ABOUT BEING NAKED GALLEY-SLAVES LABOURING AND SWEATING AT THE OAR OF A SPANISH OR MOORISH GALLEY UNDER THE CRUEL WHIPS OF THEIR SLAVE-DRIVERS etc”.
Let me add that also Masters, among us, have imagined and dreamed of being those Arab lords that can inspect and buy in the Slave Market that hunky and herculean young blond Crusader, stark naked and auctioned to the highest bidder …… or to be one of those slave-drivers on one of Cavelo’s Saracen or Spanish galleys, or one of those torturers who interrogate sturdy young male captives etc.etc.
Allow me to add two further observations.
First, I remember and I like in particular the first splendid drawing by Cavelo, showing that gorgeous, fully naked blond captured Crusader from Northern Europe, who is suffering the extreme humiliation and shame of being auctioned, like an animal, to the highest bidder in an Arab Slave Market.
I think I remember to have seen at least another similar drawing by Cavelo on the same historical subject that probably belonged to the same series of drawings, most likely accompanied (like all series of drawings on a same subject by Cavelo) by a short story.
Unluckily, as you underline, today both Cavelo’s drawings and related stories are now hard to find.
But perhaps a reader might have these “Crusaders’” drawings and story and kindly share with all of us.
Second observation: you rightly underline that the preferred subjects of Cavelo were historical subjects, like ancient Rome, the Saracens and their Crusader enemies, the Inquisition, Arab or Spanish galleys with their rowing slaves etc.
However I remember at least of series of exciting and splendid drawings and a connected story that were referring to modern events, to events that, at the time when Cavelo created them (most likely in the 980’s), were contemporary events.
I refer to a series of drawings (and connected story) that –if my memory helps me- was titled “AFGHANI WARLORDS” or “THE AFGHANI WARLORD”.
The subject of those drawings and story were the well known, infamous atrocities committed on many Russian prisoners of war by Afghani guerrillas, during the bloody Russian-Afghani war and Russian invasion of Afghanistan, between 1979 and 1989 (so really “present-day events” for the time when Cavelo created those works).
That series of drawings depicted various hunky and herculean young Russian soldiers, captured by some mountain tribe of Afghani guerrillas, led by sadistic warlords and chieftains, while these white soldiers were atrociously tortured in some mountain village ……… perhaps partly for interrogation and for extracting some military information; but more probably (as it most often occurred also in reality) barbarically tortured for mere Sadism and hatred against those “infidel dogs and invaders” !
Perhaps also of this series, some readers have copies both of those marvelous drawings and of the arousing short story that accompanied them.
Karel