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Men
Before Ten a.m. 
is
a book by photographer Véronique
Vial (with writer Pam Houston). Vial wakes
up famous (and often beautiful) men early, and lets us see what they
look like before they've even had a chance to shave! Vial would tell
her subjects when she would be arriving and then come hours earlier,
insuring she could be there to catch them off-guard and still sleepy.
Julian is included among her "victims".
She shows us actors, musicians, architects and more, as they lounge
in bed (sometimes alone, sometimes with lovers or their children),
shower, eat breakfast... This is really a book for women who love
men, showing us our lovers, brothers, fathers and sons in the crisp
morning light that reveals the inner core of the man. 
They
are sleepy, grumpy, pensive or bright with expectations for the new
day. The photographs are splendid in sharp black and white, rich
charcoal hues. Accompanying them are intriguing and insightful essays
on why and how women love men, pulling the entire package together as
something far more than a book of photographs.
In
addition to an exquisite
image of Julian, rumpled but intense, sitting on his garden porch
with his cup of coffee, she managed some fabulous photographs of some
of my other favorite men, including actor Jean Réno and
award-winning musician/producer Daniel Lanois. If you love
photography or
men, you've got to check
this out! She may have captured some of your
favorite men as well.... Buy
It.
-
Julian
was also photographed in 1989 by photographer Edward Maxey, and the
resulting image was included in the book Shooting
Stars: Contemporary Glamour Photography,
by Ricky Spears. The photograph is probably the most striking of
these three
formal portraits. Where the Hurrell image is glamourous and turns
near-perfection into true perfection, and
the Vial image is honest, intense and brings out Julian's masculine
beauty, this image
is volcanic in its intensity. Again in sharp black and white,
Julian's laser-gaze strikes right at your heart. The book is
currently out of print, but Amazon.com
may be able to locate a used copy for you if you are interested. (information
contributed by Kate)
Note:
I checked with Amazon.com to see if this book was indeed available as
a used edition. It was! However, I would have to guess, judging by
the price I was quoted, that it has become a collector's item - the
total cost, including a few dollars for shipping, was nearly $125.00
for the hardback edition! If you are willing to pay that price, you
can follow the above title link to request they obtain a copy for
you. But I also found some copies listed at several small used book
sellers through Bibliofind
(http://www.bibliofind.com/),
and those prices varied between $35 and $60. It's a little less of a
sure process, since you're dealing with a number of associated small,
independant merchants, but I think the price difference is worth it.
-
Legends
in Light (The Photography of George Hurrell)
: in his documentary, legendary Hollywood portrait photographer,
George Hurrell, is your personal tour guide into the golden age of
Hollywood, looking back at a 65 year career making the most exquisite
portraits of the most legendary and intriguing stars of the film
industry. Among his subjects: Greta Garbo, Jean Harlow, Joan
Crawford, Clark Gable, Gary Cooper, Errol Flynn. More recently:
Sharon Stone, Sherilyn Fenn, Eric Roberts and Julian
Sands. All of these last (and plenty more)
appear in the film. If you're a photography buff, like myself, you
will be glued to the screen for this one, as Hurrell, his subjects
and his admirers talk about his technique, his composition and his
magic touch. If you just like indescribably beautiful photographs of
amazing people, you won't be wasting your time watching it either.
Hurrell transformed beautiful people into perfection, gods and
goddesses forever preserved in time....
Spectacular
Julian moment of note: we see Julian sitting for Hurrell, and he
becomes aware of the documentary camera as it focuses on him. His
eyes slide slowly over until he is looking right at you.... through
you.... Melt.... The man should come with a warning label! ; )
There
is information on a documentary about his career in which Julian
appears, an (immense) downloadable preview of that documentary, some
sample images from his portfolio, and information on purchasing
original photographs - some signed by the subjects - and posters of
his work. Unfortunately, they don't show any of Julian's photographs,
but they do list a signed photograph of him for sale: for $1200.00! -
Some of us can only dream....)
Note:
I checked with the gallery that runs the site - none of the books or
other merchandise they have include images of Julian. They do have
the above-mentioned signed photograph available -- which judging from
the documentary, is quite a striking
image -- as well as the video
of the documentary - in which Julian does appear - for approx. $15.)
