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Pin-ups, bondage, and erotica! Summer is heating up, and we've put together a list of art reads that are equally as steamy. Two books, Nudity Today and New Erotic Photography, Vol. 1, show us how today's young photographers are thinking about the nude body. Our list includes pivotal artists that shed light on sex and sexuality with titles about Lee Friedlander's black-and-white nudes from the '60s and '70s, '80s NYC downtown darling Nan Goldin, and contemporary photographer Dana Hoey. From Richard Kern's alluring models from all over the world to Japanese photographer Nobuyoshi Araki's shocking bondage images, spice up your library with The Sexiest Art Books You Can Buy Right Now. And you don't even have to hide these nudie pics under your bed.
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New Erotic Photography Vol. 1
New Erotic Photography Vol. 1
Author: Dian Hanson and Eric Kroll
Publisher: Taschen
Date released: May 15, 2013
Do these contemporary artists have the best job in the world or what? This book shows steamy shots from the world's top erotic photographers right now. With comments from the artists, find out what it's really like to get down and dirty in this hot profession.
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Bunny Yeager's Darkroom: Pin-up Photography's Golden Era
Bunny Yeager's Darkroom: Pin-up Photography's Golden Era
Author: Petra Mason
Publisher: Rizzoli
Date released: September 11, 2012
In 1955, Bunny Yeager sold an image of pin-up girl Bettie Page to Playboy. This shot established her as the only female photographer in a male-dominated industry. This book holds Yeager's photos of coy pin-up girls through the '50s and '60s, taking us on a nostalgia trip of vintage sexy.
Alvarado's Pin-up Nudes
Alvarado's Pin-up Nudes
Author: Robert Alvarado
Publisher: Schiffer Publishing
Date released: April 28, 2013
Unlike the vintage pin-up ladies of Bunny Yeager's era, Robert Alvarado's women are a tough breed. These models pose with tattoos, face-paint and even a...snowboard? Alvarado's modern pin-ups show how far the field as changed in the past 60 years. But no matter what decade they come from, these photos are still super hot.
The Origin Of The World
The Origin Of The World
Author: JP Calosse
Publisher: Parkstone Press
Date released: June 14, 2013
Gustave Courbet's The Origin Of The World may be the most shocking painting in art history. Featuring a crotch-shot of a nude women, this painting was sure to test the sensibilities of 19th century ladies. This book takes a look at art that's all about the naughty "origin of the world."
Diamonds and Pearls
Diamonds and Pearls
Author: Marc Lagrange
Publisher: teNeues
Date released: June 15, 2013
Belgian photographer Marc Lagrange uses Baroque tropes of lace, diamonds, and pearls to give his erotic photography a romantic aesthetic. The sexy shoots remind us more of high fashion than nudity.
Wild Lolitas
Wild Lolitas
Author: Mikhail Paramonov
Publisher: Goliath Books
Date released: May 15, 2013
In Vladimir Nabokov's Lolita the predatory protagonist lusts after a young girl. While the models in this book are not so young, the title implies something forbidden about these women. Photographed in outdoor landscapes, these earthy nudes are as wild as the nature that surrounds them.
30 Millennia of Erotic Art
30 Millennia of Erotic Art
Authors: Klaus H Carl, Victoria Charles, Hans-Jurgen Dopp, and Joe A Thomas
Publisher: Parkstone Press
Date released: April 30, 2012
The nude body has fascinated cultures through the ages. In May, after cleaning the Sistine Chapel, the Vatican revealed a 400-year old fresco of unclothed Native Americans. Even the Church depicted nudity so long ago. This book is a celebration with our historical flesh obsession. With over 1,000 images from art history, it's like a global encyclopedia of erotic art.
SuicideGirls: Hard Girls, Soft Light
SuicideGirls: Hard Girls, Soft Light
Author: Missy Suicide
Publisher: Ammo Books
Date released: January 15, 2013
If you thought Alvarado's models looked different than your grandfather's nudie mags, think again. The SuicideGirls want to challenge everything you know about pin-up girls. This project began as a website, the brainchild of Missy Suicide, who wanted to push the boundaries to traditional sexy. The 2,500 pin-up photos in this books include goths, punks, and indie ladies all in the nude.
Bondage
Bondage
Author: Nobuyoshi Araki
Publisher: Taschen
Date released: November 26, 2012
One of Japan's most prolific and contentious photographers, Nobuyoshi Araki never fails to shock. Many of his photos feature women bound in kinbaku-bi, a Japanese style of bondage. For an exhibit in May at Mana Contemporary, co-founder of the museum Yigal Ozeri told T Magazine, "He represents a side of Japanese society that America has, in a way, a problem with, but he does not create pornography." Whether you think it's porn or not, this book is a collection of Araki's favorite bondage photos. With a price tag of $1,000, it's only for the most hardcore fans.
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Strictly Bondage
Strictly Bondage
Author: Victor Lightworship
Publisher: Goliath Books
Date released: May 15, 2013
Can't get enough of bondage? Victor Lightworship's book creates daringly sexy photos with a perfectly knotted rope. While his work doesn't match up to Araki's skilled photos, the images are a more accessible entry into bondage erotica.
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Dana Hoey: The Phantom Sex
Dana Hoey: The Phantom Sex
Author: Jean Le Baptiste
Publisher: Artbook D.A.P.
Date released: March 31, 2013
Dan Hoey's photos tackle ideas of sex and sexuality. In this book, her images include masks and casts of the female body. "I was thinking about the legend that if a woman dies in the forest, and she has silicone breast implants, they will outlive her," she told The Huffington Post about these images. Although these aren't photos to lust after, they bring up complex questions about sex and identity. Or in the least, they will make you think twice about fake boobs.
Nudity Today
Nudity Today
Author: Jesse Pearson
Publisher: Picture Box
Date released: May 31, 2013
It makes sense that the former editor-and cheif of Vice, Jesse Pearson, would write a book on nudity. In Nudity Today 10 young photographers capture show what it means to take an erotic picture in the digital age. Pearson even admits, "I have personally jerked off to several photos in this book. Creepy, right?"
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The Ballad of Sexual Dependency
The Ballad of Sexual Dependency
Author: Nan Goldin
Publisher: Aperture
Date released: June 15, 2005
Nan Goldin erupted on the downtown New York art scene in the '80s. Her gritty photos of her attractive friends made her one of the most famous young photographers of that time. In this book, Goldin shows us an intimate view of the relationships between what Goldin called her "tribe."
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Lee Frielander The Nudes: A Second Look
Lee Freidlander The Nudes: A Second Look
Author: Lee Friedlander
Publisher: Artbook D.A.P.
Date released: May 6, 2013
Photographer Lee Friedlander first published The Nudes in 1991 in conjunction with MoMA's exhibit of his photos. A the time, Charles Hagen of the New York Times, wrote that Friedlander refused to present the classical ideal of a woman: "On the contrary, he records their body hair, bruises, dirty feet and sagging flesh in sometimes excruciating detail." These unapologetic, modern nudes draw us in with more than just lust. In this second edition of Friedlander's nude photography, the author offers more photos and commentary on his captivating images.
Shot By Kern
Shot By Kern
Author: Dian Hanson and Richard Kern
Publisher: Taschen
Date released:May 15, 2013
"Shot By Kern" started as a sexy Vice video segment that followed photographer Richard Kern around the world as he shot women who weren't afraid to bare it all. This book shows the results of Kern's labors. Tough job, right? What looked like soft-core porn online becomes high art in this book, but it will still turn you on.
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