Youssef Nabil: Sleep in My Arms

Description

In this very beautiful volume of his work Nabil has focused on men at the hour of sleep, either alone or in tangent positions, an aura of erotica hovers above each image. Yet Nabil avoids the ‘in your face’ imagery so prevalent in other photographers of the male books. It may be the softness of the hand coloring, or the fact that the artist has decided on the poses for the photographs, but these images are simply men at rest – and perhaps there is more the story of each photo, but Nabil is known for allowing the audience to finish the tale he has staged. The viewer can be easily convinced that these images are stills form old movies – that is the kid of arrested imagery to be found in each work. As is mentioned in context with this publication, ‘In this first monograph on his work, Youssef Nabil photographs young men in intimate situations, asleep or on the threshold of sleep, interspersed with self-portraits, and sets up dreamlike moments that are imbued with a brooding sexuality, exploring the interior and exterior worlds of drama, beauty, glamour, sexuality and identity. SLEEP IN MY ARMS leaves the viewer eager for more of this fine artist’s work.