Saint Sebastian by Roberto Montenegro

Saint Sebastian (c.1915)
Roberto Montenegro (Mexican, 1885-1968)

The Green Waterways by Henry Scott Tuke

The Green Waterways (1926)
Henry Scott Tuke (English, 1858-1929)
Oil on canvas
48 x 44 in.
Photo credit: Grundy Art Gallery

Desert Dreamers by Gerald Hamilton

Washington D.C. : Guild Press, 1966

Desert Dreamers was originally published in London with the imprint of At the Sign of the Tiger Lily in 1914. Appearing at that time as Desert Dreamers: a Novel of Friendship under the pseudonym Patrick Weston, it tells the story of Julian Thelluson who, against his mother's wishes, decides to holiday in Algiers instead of with her in Cannes.

Making the acquaintance of a Frenchman at the hotel in Algiers, he shares with him that he plans to continue on to Biskra. The Frenchman is alarmed and tries to talk him out of it by stating that Biskra isn't the place for an Englishman like himself.

Julian's mind, however, is made up. Upon his arrival in Biskra he runs into a friend of his mother's, a barrister named Joseph Hoxton. When he is introduced to Hoxton's guide, Tayeb ben Mahmud, a young Algerian, he is instantly drawn to him.

Hamilton refers to Julian having read The Garden of Allah as the source of his desire to travel to Biskra. The Garden of Allah is a 1905 novel by Robert Smythe Hichens (author of the 1894 novel about Oscar Wilde, The Green Carnation) about an English woman of 32 years who has yet to find love. Her parents are deceased so she travels to Algeria with her maid and finds love in the desert.

Another reference, and likely the one that the Frenchman in the novel is reacting to, is the connection of Biskra with Oscar Wilde, Lord Alfred 'Bosie' Douglas, and Andre Gide. Gide has written about Wilde and Douglas traveling to Biskra and as part of their vacationing, picking up young local men. When Gide visited them, they introduced him to the lifestyle and the many young men who were available to European tourists.

Desert Dreamers would have been very bold for its time, thus the need for a pseudonym. Prior to each chapter, there is a short poem or poem fragment relating to the action of the text. They are not at all subtle. They include everything from Shakespeare to The Koran. One of my favorites is this one by Lord Alfred Douglas.

Jacinth blue and violet
  Is the radiant light that flashes
Through the tangled silken net
  When he lifts his languid lashes.

It is said that Gerald Hamilton is the source of Isherwood's Mr. Norris. In 1966, Guild Press re-released the complete text of Desert Dreamers under the author's actual name with a forward by Christopher Isherwood where he discusses this.

Bibliographies & Ratings: Young (At the Sign of the Tiger Lily edition, 4070* ; Guild Press edition, 1675*)

The Lovers by Konstantin Somov

The Lovers
Konstantin Somov (Russian, 1869-1939)

Men by Andy Warhol

Untitled (1957)
Andy Warhol (American, 1928-1987)
Gold leaf and ink on paper
19 x 24.5 in.

Mask of Flesh by Maxence van der Meersch

London : William Kimber, 1960
Translated from the French by Mervyn Savill

Although Masque de Chair was published in 1958 (seven years after the author's death), its origins date back to the height of his career in the mid 1940s. The controversial novel presents a Flemish man attempting to reconcile his catholic faith and his sexuality by sharing a series of reminiscences beginning in early childhood. It is a challenging work that has been criticized for advocating adherence to catholic doctrine over living a full life as a gay man.

Emmanuel Ghelens, born in the years before WWI, obsesses over the effect of having had the prototypical controlling, 'masculine' mother has had on his life. During the war, his parents send him to boarding school. He describes his introduction to sex and his desire to create a lasting bond with the other boys. For them, it was simply physical. At the age of 18, he was picked up by an older man in Antwerp. Although he describes being disgusted with himself after the experience, he also began to make the connection in his own mind of his behavior and that of female prostitutes. They also (unwittingly) are searching for a little tenderness ... each time surrendering a little piece of their heart.

He soon begins to describe himself as a depraved monster or as having a monster living inside him. "It had made me a prisoner, a slave of the flesh." (p.39) After consulting a priest who told him that he was damned, he decides to live in solitude to avoid corruption. He knows that he will be open to robbery and blackmail if he doesn't.

A short time later, he meets Seddik, an Algerian man who had turned to prostitution in order to survive. Seddik was really looking for a friend and had found one in Emmanuel. While traveling, Emmanuel falls ill and when he is finally able to return, Seddik has disappeared. This is a huge loss for Emmanuel. Seddik was a prospect for hope and possible redemption. He had found love ... and had now lost it. He was now a prisoner again.

For a digitized archival collection of material related to the author (including correspondence regarding the manuscript for Masque de Chair), visit Archives de Maxence van der Meersch at Bibliothèque Numérique de Roubaix (in French).


Bibliographies & Ratings: Young (2641*)

Saint Sebastien by Raymond Daussy

Saint Sébastien (1945)
Raymond Daussy (French, 1919-2010)
Oil on canvas
81 x 54 cm.