Beautiful

BeautifulMag Cover Story | Express Yourself

EVEN THOUGH BODY MODIFICATION AND DECORATION IS AS OLD AS TIME, THE FIRST TIME THE WORD TATTOO APPEARED IN WRITING WAS QUITE RECENT. IT WAS JOSEPH BANKS, A NATURALIST ABOARD CAPTAIN JAMES COOK’S SHIP THE HMS ENDEAVOUR WHO USED THE WORD TATAU IN HIS JOURNAL TO DESCRIBE THE WAY LOCALS MARKED THEMSELVES INDELIBLY. THE HMS ENDEAVOUR EXPLORED THE PACIFIC TERRITORIES AND WENT TO AUSTRALIA, NEW ZEALAND AND AS FAR AS TAHITI. INDEED IT IS BELIEVED THAT THE ART OF SCARRING, PAINTING AND STAINING THE SKIN ORIGINATES FROM THIS POLYNESIAN ISLE. THOUGH BROUGHT TO THE WESTERN WORLD BY CAPTAIN COOK, IT IS DUE TO MANY SAILORS WHO TRAVELLED THE SEVEN SEAS THAT THE ART OF TATTOO BECAME WILDLY KNOWN AND POPULAR FOR MANY DIFFERENT REASONS.

All through history, human beings have used the techniques to ink their skin for different reasons. In the beginning tattoos were placed as ceremonial signs, rites of passage to give one a certain position within its tribe or to scare away preditors and enemies. In later times, tattoo’s were also applied for very different reasons. Farmers used it, and still do, to mark their cattle. More horrid was the usage in the W.O II, when the Holocaust victims were all marked by inked numbers. It is this practise in particular, the forced tattoo as an identification system, that has shed such a dark shadow on the ancient art of body decoration.

Over the past decennia starting in the 1970’s, tattoo’s have gained in popularity again. Often referred to as ink, pieces, tats or tattoo art, tattoo’s have become extremely mainstream in Western fashion for both sexes, to all economic classes and to age groups from later teenage to middle age. Though the patterns and illustrations have changed, and are changing faster under influence of fashion trends, the purpose of tats has remained pretty much the same. Though not so much to scare enemies, although for certain gangs this is still the case, tattoos are a means of expression and identification.

Cover man Andrew England is 25 and origins from Northampton, United Kingdom. Here he grew up and was trained as an electrician. For the last 10 years he has been working already in this profession. Andrew – obviously – likes physical work and that sparked (no pun intended) his interest in the gym. In getting fit and aesthetic. For the past 3 years, Andrew has been training and is now hoard on his way to break into the industry and achieve a pro status within the next 2 years. Through body building competitions. But Andrew’s massive muscles are not the only thing that make him such an outstanding personality. Like many other guys that move in his circles, models such as Dany Pearce, Jason McKenzie, Danny Hixon and Ant Hill, Andrew is also heavily tattoed. Asked about tats, Andrew says: “I started being interested in ink when I was 16. I had my first tattoo on my chest. It was a cross and was only the beginning of what was to come. I had a few more tribal applied before I chose a split theme. I was raised in a family with a catholic background, which is the theme to one of my sleeves. The second sleeve has a Japanese theme, but what links the two themes together is an underlying love of the dark side: skulls and dragons etc.” Andrew is an up an coming male model. Both in England and international territory he enjoys great interest from both photographers, as agencies and potential clients. His strong masculine looks and music-ular physics make hism the perfect fitness model. But what about his tattoo’s? Andrew: “Although my tattoos do hide some of my muscle definition I believe its what makes me unique and I’m always thinking of how I can add to my ink work.”

Love them or hate them, tattoos are here to stay. Or rather they’re to stay. Simon Barnes, the man behind the celebrated photography brand Hotsnapz is no stranger to tattooed models. When asked about the trend of tats on models he says: “Five years ago no self -respecting fashion or fitness model would have had them and even now in fitness competitions marks can be lost if they hide definition. But generally now they are everywhere. Also due to many celebrities who have ink. David Beckham was among those to make them mainstream. He certainly was in the forefront of making them acceptable and certainly very early to show a full sleeve in a commercial campaign, but it didn’t take long before both male and female models were sporting them. Personally I find that some sleeves are difficult to photograph where the whole arm can appear like a bruise, but generally I think they really add a new dimension to a shot.”-BM-

SIMON BARNES | BEAUTIFULMAG
ANDREW ENGLAND | BEAUTIFULMAG

Belgian Delight

WE HAVE MENTIONED ON NUMEROUS OCCASIONS THAT THE MIX OF DIFFERENT RACES AND CULTURES OFTEN RESULTS IN BEAUTIFUL PHYSICAL RESULTS. BUT IN THAT CASE WE MOSTLY TALKED ABOUT PEOPLE WHO COME FROM DIFFERENT ORIGINS. DIFFERENT COUNTRIES AND DIFFERENT CORNERS FROM THE WORLD. NEVER WOULD WE HAVE MENTIONED THIS IN THE CONTEXT OF BELGIUM.

Belgium, as most of you know, is located between The Netherlands in  the North and France in the South. It’s a country known for many things. Its big harbours, its rich chocolates. Waffels, beers, the Smurfs and of course the famous statue of Manneke Pis. But Belgium is also very known for its language separations. Half the country speaks Vlamish, which is close to Dutch. And the other half speaks French. Two languages that have absolutely nothing to do with each other.

No I don’t really know that, if we talk about the mixing of two different cultures, Belgium can be used as a reference. Probably not. Most likely not. But that doesn’t mean one can indeed find some beautiful people in Belgium. Maybe it’s because of the food. Maybe the mix of northern and southern lifestyle. Or maybe it is indeed due to the fact the country is divided by two language groups. Whatever it is, you can spot quiet some masculine beauty in Belgium.

Sam is 19 years old and – indeed – comes from Belgium. We don’t know that much about him except that he studies and obviously takes care of himself. Enough so to be noticed by famous Malemodel.nl photographer Gert Kist. As we all know, Gert doesn’t shy away to enrich his already crowded online gallery of mostly Dutch masculine beauty with some exotic physical portraits of guys from beyond the Dutch borders. And this time it was the turn for Sam. And I think we can all agree, seeing Sam turning and posing in the signature setting of Gert Kist, that this young and Fresh Belgian is indeed a valuable addition. If you ask me valuable enough to be added to the list of things Belgium is known for. –BM-

GERT KIST | BEAUTIFULMAG

Thug Lovin'

“...YOU'RE FEELIN' THE STRENGTH OF THE RUMP.
STEP UP, HEAR THE FUNK OF THE JUMP THAT THE THUGSTAS FEEL.
JUST BE THUGGIN', STRAIGHT BUZZIN', LOVIN' YOUR PEOPLES CAUSE WE SO REAL...”

It’s no surprise to erotic art followers out there that Justin Monroe loves him some chocolate. He is constantly being asked where he gets his ideas and what inspires him. Sometimes it’s a movie that he’s seen or a book that he’s read, but in this case, it’s a bouquet of nasty rap songs.

Justin: “There’s something about rap music that goes against authority- it’s vulgar, rhythmic, violent, exciting, and full of in-your-face cockiness. With all that being said, it’s almost like rap and sex are one in the same. Hell, as far as I’m concerned, rap music is the entire reason baby oil was invented. When I think of rap, I think of big booty hoes, beautiful dark skin, parties, and gangsters. The lyrics put you in the mood to get down and dirty. For example, Lil’ Kim’s song, “How Many Licks”: “...Puerto Rican papi, used to be a Deacon
But now he be sucking me off on the weekend And this black dude I called King Kong
He had a big ass dick and a hurricane tongue...”

After reading that, you can see why rap was such an influence in these images. Rap and sex go hand in hand. And for all you photographers out there, if you wanna get your models’ clothes off, put on a Too Short album, and then the panties will hit the floor. –BM-

Models: Karamo Brown and Courtney Allan.

JUSTIN MONROE | BEAUTIFULMAG

The Guy

WHAT DO WE MEAN WHEN WE SAY TYPICAL. TYPICAL REFERS TO THINGS THAT ARE, WITHOUT QUESTION, DEFINED TO A CERTAIN EXPECTATION. IT IS TYPICAL THAT A BALL IS ROUND. IT IS TYPICAL THAT A FLAME IS HOT. AND IT IS TYPICAL THAT WATER IS WET. TYPICAL IS A TERM THAT IS USED TO DESCRIBE THE OBVIOUS. AND OFTEN THE STEREOTYPE. BUT WHEN IT COMES TO MASI WALIYAR, THERE IS NOTHING STEREOTYPE. MASI DEFINITLY IS NOT YOUR TYPICAL GUY.

When one thinks of the typical Southern California guy, what usually comes to mind is the blonde, tanned, surfer dude that we're used to seeing in films and television shows from Hollywood. Masi Waliyar is definitely not typical. With his black hair, brown eyes, full lips and dark features coupled with a charming, college boy demeanour, Masi has the ability to be the college jock in one image and the seductive leading man in the next. Whether it be a traditional suit, fashion-forward couture, or in the case of our shoot, athletic gear, swimwear and underwear, he looks like the outfits he's wearing were created just for him.  Again, Masi Maliyar is definitely not typical.

Born and raised in Rancho Cucamonga, a beautiful suburban city about 40 miles from Los Angeles, Masi was on the road to a very conservative life. Growing up in a large Afghan family that values the importance of education and hard work, he was majoring in accounting when a fellow student convinced him to consider modeling. She helped him set up a couple photo shoots to get his portfolio started and within three months, he was signed to Slater Model Management in Los Angeles.

In late August 2013, Masi planned a trip to New York City to visit his sister. Though the plan was to just vacation with her and enjoy New York's legendary nightlife, he also thought to reach out to a certain photographer whose work he admired, Kevin D. Hoover. "Masi reached out to me via Instagram," says Kevin. "We exchanged email addresses and cell phone numbers. If possible, I like to get a feel for a model's personality before we shoot. We communicated several times before he hit town. He let me know he wanted to do fitness, swimwear and underwear. I've had the good fortune over these 3 years as a professional photographer to create relationships with a few companies that trust me with their brand and allow me to use them on my models. I put Masi in a lot of Rufskin, plus some 2EROS, M8MATE and Todd Sanfield. The end result was nothing short of breath taking." And not at all typical. –BM-

KEVIN HOOVER | BEAUTIFULMAG
MASI WALIYAR | BEAUTIFULMAG

The Australian Dream

AUSTRALIAN LIFESTYLE IS THE NEW AMERICAN DREAM. THE PROMISE OF LIVING IN MODERN CITIES BUILT ON SUNLIT SANDY BEACHES. WHAT ONCE WAS INSTITUTED AS A PRISON COLONY EMERGED LIKE A PHOENIX FROM THE FLAMES TO BECOME A CONTINENT THAT OFFERS THE DREAM OF A LIFESTYLE WHERE QUALITY OF LIFE COMES BEFORE ANYTHING ELSE.  AUSTRALIA, SO FAR AWAY FOR MOST OF US, HAS BECOME THE NEW UTOPIA, AND THE SUBJECT OF A LONGING FOR MANY.

When you think about it, Australia is a strange place in the world. A large island continent inhabited by mostly European descendants, but in a part of the world that is mostly populated by Asians. A geographic situation that has resulted in a whole new generation of mixed race. With his Australian and Japanese background, Tombe Harvey is part of this generation.

Tombe Harvey is only 21 years old and a natural athlete. From early on Tombe was an Australian state level sprinter and competitive boxer. Natural athlete or not, a body like that doesn’t come all by itself. Obviously. Recently Tombe has become involved in natural bodybuilding. Asides from the fact that he is a qualified personal trainer, Tombe is also the personification of the Australian dream. He works as lifeguard and surf instructor.

Now those last two activities aren’t of much use in Tombe Harvey’s life at this moment. The young Australian currently resides in Brighton, United Kingdom, and everyone knows that even though located on the coast, the surf of the English Channel isn’t exactly Bondi Beach. But that doesn’t withhold Tombe from showing of his impressive body. Instead of running half naked over a beach, Tombe now works as a dancer and stripper for the Adonis Cabaret Show and enjoys there as much success as being a lifeguard. With the only difference that the sharks are of a very different kind.

Today’s portraits featuring Tombe Harvey are signed off by Pierre-Yves Monnerville. Like Tombe, Pierre-Yves was born on an island, though of musch smaller proportions than Australia. Pierre-Yves comes from Martinique, a little paradise in the French Caribbean. Having discovered the work of Robert Mapplethorpe at the early age of 15 made Pierre-Yves decide male photography was what he wanted to do. He started working for model agencies in Paris and London, but more and more he found his way in his own personal work, creating his own personal style. His concepts always turn around urban life…and urban guys… His exquisite taste and sublime style in photography have resulted in many publications of Pierre-Yves’ work on international websites and in book formats. Always simple and always with class, Pierre-Yves Monnerville delivers first class male photographic work, and his session with Tombe Harvey is no exception to this. –BM-

TOMBE HARVEY | BEAUTIFULMAG
PIERRE-YVES MONNERVILLE | BEAUTIFULMAG