There are so many talented, imaginative & prolific gay illustrators out there that seemingly can do it all in a variety of media and genres and it's all we can do to try and keep up with them. Fortunately we live in an era when so many of these guys get the exposure they deserve. Thanks to the web many of these artists get to show their stuff on a variety of websites, including their own. Many of these artists also put a lot of effort and resources into self-publishing their work. And then there are book companies like Taschen & Bruno Gmunder which take the risk and present this artwork as it's meant to be seen in high quality art books. We've mentioned many of these artists before but we wanted to give them their own individual spotlights and hopefully make many of you aware of their work.

  Publisher Bruno Gmunder recently published In Yer Face, a collection of beautiful illustrations by artist Ismael Alvarez. The company succinctly and accurately describes the book & the man as "one of today's most charismatic artists of male erotica. Alvarez' incredibly striking style is a powerful blend of beauty and unabashed sensuality. From the fantastic to the vividly realistic, the works collected in this book are bound to arouse the eye and body."

        

  Ismael Alvarez was born & raised in a relatively small town in Spain and while he started drawing at an early age he admits that it wasn't until he moved to Madrid that he developed his distinctive style. In his own words he says "it was only here in Madrid that I developed my work as a comic illustrator, designer and artist. I adore the world of comics in general, the world of eroticism, and—why not say it—the world of pornography. I am one of those who think that it is art, whatever way you look at it; I don't believe that the mere act of watching how people perform sex can be considered as something deviant and dirty. Quite the contrary."

  Of course we love the style & substance of the art of Ismael Alvarez and we love the philosophy behind it. With regards to his website (which we heartily recommend) he says "...you will see that I don't beat about the bush; when it comes to illustrating, I do what I want when I want, and if you don't like it, don't look at it. Sex is beautiful, dear people. Let's look at it the way it is…"  Who can argue with that?

  Ismael Alvarez has distinct and unique style that we both admire and envy. He expresses himself beautifully & freely with all kinds of subject matter--pop culture, sci-fi & fantasy, super-heroes, celebrities, and porn stars. And all of his work is done imbued with eroticism, both implied and "in yer face" . Of course a single book can't possibly cover everything but In Yer Face certainly represents a wonderful overview of Alvarez' work. We've loved watching this artist evolve and his body of work grow. Hopefully there will be many more books to come.