For sale: Bizarre Fotos, Volume 2. NYC: Bélier Press, 1979.

Description

Irvin Klaw (1910–1966) was a pioneering figure in American pop culture, best known for his role as a pin-up photographer and distributor of risqué materials. Based in New York City, Klaw operated “Movie Star News”, where he sold celebrity photos and pin-ups — as well as fetish photography and films.

Klaw faced legal challenges in the 1950s during obscenity crackdowns, which led to the destruction of much of his work. Despite this, he remains a significant figure in pin-up and fetish art history.

Bélier Press was known for reviving and preserving (bootlegging?) Klaw’s photographs, which were pivotal in the underground fetish and pin-up scenes. This volume features “over 270” black-and-white reproductions of Klaw’s work. Klaw loved making pictures of models in playful bondage poses, high heels, lingerie, and other fetishistic attire — Bettie Page being the most famous.