Title: Body Painting: Masterpieces by Joanna Gair Author: Joanne Gair (Foreword by Heidi Klum) Publisher: Universe Publish Date: 2006 Pages: 156 Genres:: Erotic Art,Reviewer: Jerome D'Angelo

Rating:

Erotic artwork can be painfully subjective. The days of Georgia O’Keefe may have long past us, as subtlety is often replaced by showiness. Suggestive imagery isn’t as sexy as it used to be and the element of mystery is mostly gone. While there’s certainly nothing wrong with depicting the raw and untamed power of sexuality (quite the contrary, it can be sublime), a less-intense approach to erotica will always please those thoughtful enough to appreciate it.

Joanna Gair, regarded worldwide as one of the leading makeup artists and body painters of our time, has released a collection of her artwork that celebrates the allure of the covered body. Instead of drapery, however, Gair uses the female form as a canvas, utilizing its wonderful shape and intricacy to create some uniquely sensuous pieces. Body Painting: Masterpieces by Jonanne Gair features her artwork on the bodies of such celebrities as Demi Moore, Heidi Klum, Elle McPherson, Pamela Anderson, Kelis, Goldie Hawn, Rachel Hunter and Madonna, all done so extraordinarily it can be difficult to see the star through the image. This is not because Gair simply splatters them with paint; although, one picture does show a model literally dripping with chocolate while holding a strawberry. Rather, Gair so masterfully grafts the image onto the subject that the image takes on a life of its own.

Commissioned by Sports Illustrated to help with several of their swimsuit issues, Gair painted bikinis and other suggestive swimwear on the featured models. Although SI hardly conjures up thoughts of erotica, the results are remarkable. Some of Gair’s best work with Klum can be featured here; Klum sports a flower-print bikini and red-and-yellow tie-dye one piece amidst the beach landscape. At first glance, you might not notice Klum is actually completely nude, the painting is done so well. Another picture shows model Tiffany Greene in a vintage one-piece complete with rubber cap. Petra Nemcova is featured in a particularly flattering number where Gair’s three dimensional shading of the strings and lines is superb. Noemie Lenoir appears ready to disrobe, her arms crossed playfully over her chest with Gair painting the swimsuit so it looks like it’s being taken off.

Other non-SI highlights include a 1910’s themed shot of Karen Elson, so perfectly touched up her skin looks like marble. Model Carolyn Murphy is given a sophisticated 1930s look worthy of Greta Garbo, arms beneath her chin and resting on a velvet couch. The aforementioned Kelis has a piece seemingly tailor-made for her character, as though viewed through a kaleidoscope, she’s painted in vibrant reds, purples, greens and blues forming an almost psychedelic hodgepodge of color upon her body.

It is Gair’s work with Demi Moore that is perhaps most impressive of all. As a follow-up to her eye-opening 1991 Vanity Fair cover photo by Annie Leibovitz in which Gair helped out with makeup, where Moore appears nude and pregnant, Gair portrayed Moore’s near flawless form once again in 1992. This time, as shown on Body Painting’s own cover, Moore has a Richard Tyler business suit painted onto her. Gair captures all the pinstripes and flaps in the fabric, as well as the shimmer of the red silk tie. Upon close inspection, you will notice Moore’s nipples and navel, but they are so masterfully veiled that finding them becomes part of the fun of studying the image.

In 1993, Gair worked with Moore again, this time also while pregnant. She painted Moore, who was eight-and-a-half months along, in the style of Botticelli. The images of flowers and leaves cover Moore like a dress, and again the viewer has to be reminded that she is in fact nude, save for the wreath around her neck. In 1995, Gair painted Moore in several pictures to make her look like an old-fashioned Barbie™ doll, complete with over-sized eyes and porcelain skin. Truly transformed, Moore is barely even recognizable, doll-like even in her pose.

 Body Painting chronicles the career of a marvelous artist who realized the power of body and of art to enhance it. For Gair, bare skin is art on which to portray other art, the canvas being as wondrous as the paint. Body Painting is at home in any art or erotica collection, and it appeals to the most simple as well as the most exotic tastes.