Backstage At Titty City
A look behind the seedy scenes of a joint where sordid sirs can dream,
of acting out an obscene scheme, if sleazy act remains unseen,
with a powdered up carnal being, partly comprised of saline
performing deeds of lewd theme; she’s a fille de joie, a libertine!
The sort of girl society abhors, dubbed a trollop, minx or whore
A floozy accompanied by musical score
but debauched to one is to another a bore, or to her a callous chore,
for no girl can actually adore rigid strangers groping galore -
whether one is dashing or a snore.
Exploitation is a two way street, when dancers and their dupes do meet,
for observation from tush-to-teat and friction dealt upon one’s seat,
can be for both a sort of treat, be it monetary or to excrete
both rewards should be discrete; a taboo transaction is complete.
More unabashed lasciviousness follows the jump…
Shawn Desman
Here for your viewing pleasure is a retrospective that proves Matt is an equal opportunity photographer when it comes to exposing eye-candy - it is not just foxy females round these parts! Matt’s had the privilege of shooting the studly Shawn Desman on several occasions now, and these are but a few firm favourites - some old, some new.
Jump the break for more Desman, as well as a bonus video shot at Westside Studio, which features a few familiar faces.
Skyler’s The Limit
A recent subscription to the jet-set lifestyle saw Matt stop off in the Miami heat, after leaving the equally sweltry surroundings of Cape Town, to pay a little visit to model Niki Skyler, for the purpose of a prurient photo session. The experience was a bit dine-and-dash, with Matt only in town for a spell, so I’ll express our sincerest apologies if Niki’s clothing should appear a tad ill-fitting, scant, or full of holes - I believe it worked out for the best.
Thanks to Judd Allison for use of his club house, which came complete with a ‘51 Chevy and various other man-treats - the remainder of which, alongside more nubile Niki, can be seen after the jump.
Bless The Rain
Having wrapped a week long job in Capetown, Matt and his allegiant assistant Papi took to exploring South Africa’s beauty on a rare-day off, and, naturally, he shot a creative to share with us. I’m not sure that still counts as a day off…
Having harmonized with producer Debbie Bacher throughout his commercial gig’s entirety, Matt asked the Capetown native about her help with putting together a creative befitting the surroundings, a request to which she happily obliged. She picked the duo up at dawn and they made the hour and a half journey to the west shore, namely to the charmingly-christened Cornellskop Farm, a premiere company that trains and provides animals for commercial work. As they navigated the journey west, the weather worsened, a turn which only went to heighten Matt’s anticipation - partly worried about the rain, the look of the stormy sky took the form of temptress, as aesthetically it is a look he favours, but torrid conditions could make shooting a torturous endeavour…
Matt must have packed his lucky rabbit’s foot, as he got the best of both worlds - an atmospheric backdrop with no rain. Having arrived at Cornellskop Farm, the team met with Jet, their cheetah specialist, and together they took to the hills to find a spot to shoot. The impending storm did nothing to put off either cheetah; Sarg, a twelve month old and Zulu, a sixteen month old, behaved beautifully - peaceful and friendly. They modelled as well, if not better, than any subject that Matt has photographed before, and were rewarded with tasty morsels of raw meat as the shoot dragged on. Matt’s morsel of meat, and ours, is the shot above, as well as an experience which he described as a highlight of his life.
Bless the jump for a bonus series of snap shots from South Africa, with more to follow in the days to come.
The Sheepdogs - Feeling Good
The music video for the Sheepdogs’ Feeling Good is a story of graft, as much as it is an exploitation homage and three & a half minutes of badass beauty. It’s the culmination of a lot of labour - labour prefacing the eight, sixteen-hour days that went into shooting this beast by several years. The real story starts when Matt, green, virginal & wafer-thin as a mint, was given a chance by Joel Carriere, owner/found of Bedlam Music Management and Dine Alone Records. Joel commissioned some band shots from Matt, materializing in their first project together for the band Moneen - shot out of a small studio in Toronto’s east end that doubled as Matt’s dwelling. As a result of these humble beginnings, Matt has been able to work with nearly all of Joel’s euphonious empire (a venerable who’s who of Canadian crooners and combos) leading up to the climactic point of this, a stop-motion short for the hairy pride of the Prairies.
The graft certainly didn’t stop with the start of this project, and will continue after it, but thanks to a tight-knit crew, as well as collaborator/Sheepdogs’ enthusiast Mike Rybinski of Spot Cinema, the toil and trouble were well worth it. You might even say that this undertaking has left those involved with a warm sense of sentiment - har, har.
The Passing Shot is just the spot to harbour the unofficial Director’s cut of the video, a version which may have been a bit sanguinary for the mainstream media. For more of an in-depth exploration into the making of the video, head over to Rolling Stone Magazine and enjoy some Director’s commentary alongside a few on-set snaps - but before you do, cannonade the jump for behind the scenes photos and video, as well as a full run down of what can be credited to whom.
Bomb Girls Season Two
Two-thousand & thirteen is off with a running start, as Matt aids and abets the aesthetics of the already appealing Bomb Girls, through this period-piece photo series, which commemorates the start of the show’s second season. If you’re out of the loop, stop worrying and learn to love the six-episode strong first season - the artwork for which Matt was also lucky enough to shoot. For an added treat, as watching Matt prattle on about himself is considered by many a calorie-free goody, visit the Bomb Girls page and click “go behind the scenes of the photo shoot” for a bit of insight from the man himself.
Bomb Girls is shown every Wednesday at 8pm, on Global Television, with the next episode (ep. 2) airing January 9th.
Sweetpea’s Flower Shop
A very short (and very sweet) post of new work today, in the form of Matt’s commission by Sweetpea’s Sara Jameson for WedLuxe magazine. Not content with working merely alongside Matt (past collabs with the shop here, here & here), Sweetpea Sara brought his assistant Papi and lovely girlfriend Genevieve into their blossomy business for this efflorescent series, which appears in full as apart of WedLuxe’s Style File section of their Couture Chronicles blog.
Crows Nest Barbers
A murder of first-rate barbers…
Matt and I have both been trimmed and tapered by Jon Roth & the Crows over the last few years, so when it was decided that the natty nature of the gang needed to be preserved pictorially, who better to call upon than an enthusiast? Avid admirers of the Barnesian microcosm may recall this last round of shots, but with a bevy of new faces in the fold, an update was in order.
The Crows in question are a crew whose cuts are as easy on the eye as their mean mugs, a feat which makes for both an aesthetically-pleasing shop as well as a series of photographs. Blending an ol’ timey passion for simple, timeless cuts with modern and eclectic individual style, the Crows Nest barbers are a discerning lot, a fact which comes across clearly in Matt’s classic approach to their portraits. Razor past the jump for the series in its entirety, and book yourself in with one of these superb scissorsmiths!
Albert Watson
Photographing a fellow shooter can be a daunting task - a task made ever the more daunting when that shooter is a photographic idol…
On Friday, Matt was invited out by Vistek to a lecture that they were putting together for photographer Albert Watson. This in itself was an exciting event, as Albert’s work has long been admired by Matt, but it was to be made that much more exciting by Vistek’s Christopher Huchenski, who managed to meet Matt’s request for a post-lecture shoot with Albert. It wasn’t the first time that Matt was to meet an idol, as he’d previously spent a day in London with celebrity photographer John Stoddart, but it was the first time he’d been asked to photograph one…
After an extensive lecture (highlighted by a story where Albert recalled photographing both for Vogue in France & Vogue in NYC, followed by Frank Zappa in LA - in a single day) he was tired, but he still managed to give Matt a few tips on lighting while he sat for the photograph. What followed was a tremendous personal achievement and the final product was just as Matt set it out to be - a traditional and simple portrait. The experience harked back to an assignment Matt had back at Sheridan, about how one would approach photographing a favourite photographer - who knew it would be as easy as grabbing Jeff, Papi, and a Hassleblad!
Thanks to Vistek and Christopher Huchenski for hooking up a truly inspirational event, and to Albert Watson for such an engaging body of work, and putting up with Matt’s fandom - Matt’s favourite photographs by Albert appear below.
