Amg Studio

Bob Mizer was a controversial American photographer and filmmaker. The erotic auteur was a pioneer in male portraiture. Mizer was known for establishing the Athletic Model Guild—the oldest male model photography studio in the United States—and founding the beefcake magazine Physique Pictorial, which featured the work of Tom of Finland and George Quaintance, among others. Due to the homoerotic and boundary-pushing nature of Mizer’s work, he had some run-ins with the law, eventually being convicted of the unlawful distribution of obscene material through the U.S. Mail. He served nine months in prison. Mizer was incredibly prolific with a portfolio estimated at one million images and thousands of films that include important cultural figures like Arnold Schwarzenegger, Andy Warhol’s muse Joe Dallesandro and artist Jack Pierson. As well as Hollywood actors, bodybuilders, porn stars and hustlers. Influencing artists like David Hockney, Robert Mapplethorpe, Francis Bacon and many others.

For centuries, the human figure has held an allure for artists, and those working in photography — a medium celebrated for its documentary properties and its accuracy — have long sought to express humanity in its purest state. Fine nude photography presents an empowering challenge for artists, whether they’re endeavoring to counter traditional ideals of beauty, deeply examine power, sexuality and gender or simply create direct and expressive images of the human form, unguarded and unadorned, simultaneously vulnerable and strong.

While the collection of fine nude photography on 1stDibs includes pioneers of the 20th century — such as Edward Weston, Jack Mitchell and Slim Aarons — many contemporary nude photographers have taken their choice of visual medium in directions that have proven provocative and refreshing.

Self-taught Belgian freelancer Kirsten Thys van den Audenaerde, for example, has ventured into the deserts of Utah with her nude models, working largely with expired Polaroid film to produce wild juxtapositions of pure human forms amid dry and dusty landscapes. Award-winning fashion photographer Ellen von Unwerth redefines the female gaze — her bold and erotic images of celebrities and magazine models have left an indelible mark on the visual landscape of the fashion world.

The study of who and what we are is central to art — find a range of fine nude photography on 1stDibs, including work by Helmut Newton, Robert Mapplethorpe, Stefanie Schneider and others.