Working Class Heroes: The Homoerotic Art Of Neel Bate aka Blade
Carlyle Kneeland Bate (1916-1989), who signed his works as Neel Bate, is a far less known figure of homoerotic art than Tom of Finland, though, not less iconic. During his lifetime, Bate's drawings were destroyed thrice, but he never stopped producing risky depictions of truckers, sailors, and farmboys engaged in passionate intercourse.
Fig. 1. Nude torso of Neel Bate by Douglass Juleff, 1960s (leslielohman.org)
Fig. 2. Barn Revisitied, 1970s, pen on paper (leslielohman.pastperfectonline.com)
Fig. 3. Yakima, 1983 (leslielohman.pastperfectonline.com)
Fig. 4. Sketch (leslielohman.pastperfectonline.com)
Fig. 5. Untitled, ca 1970s (leslielohman.pastperfectonline.com)
Fig. 6. tumblr.com
Fig. 7. Untitled, 1981 (leslielohman.pastperfectonline.com)
Fig. 8. Untitled, 1984, pen on paper (leslielohman.pastperfectonline.com)
Fig. 9. Born to Rise Hell, 1980 (leslielohman.pastperfectonline.com)
Fig. 10.
Fig. 11. Untitled, 1979 (leslielohman.pastperfectonline.com)
From A Rural Place To Hollywood
Carlyle Kneeland Bate was born in Canada. Shortly after, the family relocated to the rural outskirts of Seattle. The childhood impressions shaped Bate's artistic personality as local farmboys would remain one of his favorite subjects. In high school, Bate received a scholarship enabling him to study at what's now known as Seattle's Cornish College of Arts, yet the Depression made him search for a job instead of attending art classes. For some time, the artist worked as an illustrator in California. Then, in 1936, he settled in Hollywood as a designer and an active participant in the local homosexual underground. In times of the Second World War, Bate enlisted in the Merchant Marines after destroying all his drawings as they may put an end to his service. When the war was over, the artist moved to New York, where he stayed for more than forty years until his death.
Fig. 12. Bro, 1985 (leslielohman.pastperfectonline.com)
Fig. 13. Meadow, 1985 (leslielohman.pastperfectonline.com)
Fig. 14. Mean Cock, 1984 (leslielohman.pastperfectonline.com)
Fig. 15. leslielohman.pastperfectonline.com
Fig. 16. Neel Bate by Russ Warner (Wikipedia.org)
Fig. 17. The Barn (darkentriesrecords.com)
Fig. 18. The Barn (darkentriesrecords.com)
Fig. 19. Six pieces from The Barn (clampart.com)
The Artist And The Model
Living in NY, Bate became a remarkable representative of a local gay community. He earned his living as a designer and also modeled for George Platt Lynes. His muscled body allowed him to pose for physique photos (Fig. 16). In the 1950s, Bate started an affair with Lynes' younger model Ernest Henry. Though they stayed together throughout Bate's life, their relationship soon turned platonic, and the artist had many other lovers on the side. As a civilian, Bate resumed his artistic activity in the late 1940s. One of his works of that period was The Barn, a gay encounter in twelve panels (Fig. 17-19). The visual story about the passionate sex of a young hitchhiker and an older motorcyclist was confiscated by the police. Fortunately, there also were photos of the images made by Lynes, so the work eventually survived. By the way, some policemen didn't miss their chance to make pirate reproductions of the drawings, so Bate's work began circulating the world as its' crude copy. Nevertheless, the artist continued producing banned gay erotic because, in his own words, "To do it well is like a compulsion."
Fig. 20. leslielohman.pastperfectonline.com
Fig. 21. leslielohman.pastperfectonline.com
Fig. 22. leslielohman.pastperfectonline.com
Fig. 23. leslielohman.pastperfectonline.com
Fig. 24. leslielohman.pastperfectonline.com
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Click HERE for an article on the iconic gay art of Tom of Finland
Sources: Wikipedia.org; leslielohman.org; Jim Eigo. The Art and Life of Blade (Neel Bate)