Photographer Michael Alago has a deep fascination for muscular, hard machos—and in his photo book The Brutal Truth, he shares this fascination with us. The men in this book are almost terrifying: astoundingly strong, extensively tattooed and nearly bursting with testosterone. If you have the balls to take it like a real man, you'll be stoked by these stallions. Face the brutal truth and the rough divinity of men on 260 virile pages.
In Keith Caputo's brief but succinct introduction to this collection of photographs by Michael Alago, BRUTAL TRUTH, he describes the very gifted and imaginative artist as a 'voyeuristic Lucifer', a moniker that seems most fitting after perusing the many richly colored photographs of male models in this book. Alago seeks and finds a particular type of model - usually very pumped, many very hairy, tattooed, pierced, and comfortable in clothing suggestive of on the edge behavior - and captures the 'brutal potential' of these men in photographs that are almost like dark fantasies.
Alago doesn't flinch from suggestive poses nor does he try to coat the images with fake innocence. These photographs are of raw, sweaty, hungry hunters who challenge the viewer - and then once the seduction has past, seem to have a finely honed sense of humor in their purpose. One aspect that makes his work so interesting page after page is his insertion of brief poems (it is not certain whether these are written by Caputo or Alago), and of pages of flowers and flowering trees. At times he places the calla lilies in the arms of one of his supposed brutes and the contrast is dramatic, and fun!
Michael Alago uses the underbelly of New York City as his stage and the moods he manages to convey surpass those of other artists not completely committed to their visions. This is raw, rough, and proudly blatant masochism. Alago knows exactly what he is doing, what he wants, and is able to produce his visions. He is a man of many talents - talent scout, producer, writer and photographer who has been in integral part of the careers of people such as Nina Simone, Johnny Rotten, and Cyndi Lauper among others. But even with a first class resume and an imaginative mind, the most prominent aspect of his work is his honesty. This is a very powerful collection of rough trade.
