John Willie

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This article is part of 'The Legends Project'

As part of the "Legends Project", John Willie has been recognized as an BDSM Icon
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John Alexander Scott Coutts (✦December 9, 1902 - August 5, 1962), better known as John Willie, was a pioneering fetish photographer and bondage artist.

Life and work

John Willie was born on December 9, 1902, in what was then British Singapore. In 1903, his family returned to their country of origin, England. After studying at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, he became a second lieutenant but was forced to leave the institution in 1925 when he married Eveline Fisher, a nightclub receptionist, without the permission of his commanding officer. The couple moved to Australia the following year. However, in 1930, they divorced.

In 1932, John Coutts entered the fetish network when he wanders into the MacNaught Shoe Store in Sydney, Australia. MacNaught was a producer of fetishistic high heeled shoes that contributed photographs and advertised in London Life magazine.

In 1936, Willie met Holly Anna Faram, his future wife, muse, and model, at the High Heel Club, where "shoe lovers" and other fetishists gathered. In 1945, John Willie moved to Canada, where he stayed for a year before going to the United States.

Coutts was shown copies of London Life for the first time. Mr. W. of MacNaught placed Coutts in contact with a retired mariner in Sydney who sold high-heeled shoes using the trade name and pseudonym of “Achilles”. Achilles was a seller of high-heeled shoes who regularly corresponded and advertised in London Life magazine. Coutts visited Achilles and the two became friends.

Achilles placed Coutts in contact with the "American Social Circle" surrounding Charles Guyette. Achilles gave Coutts the name and address of John Bringman, Charles Guyette’s photographer.

In ca. 1947–48, he moved to New York City, where he published his bondage and fetish magazine Bizarre from 1946 to 1959 (compared with ENEG's work in Exotique magazine, published 1956 - 1959).

The magazine included many photographs, often of his wife. There were also many letters from readers; he was accused of inventing these letters but insisted they were genuine.

As a bondage artist, he is best known for his figure of Sweet Gwendoline, which he drew in a clear, anatomically correct style that influenced later artists such as ENEG and Eric Stanton. Other characters include U69 (censored to U89 in some editions) as the raven-haired dominatrix who ties up Gwendoline and Sir Dystic d'Arcy, the only prominent male character and probably a parody of Willie himself.

The comic strip was published by Irving Klaw, who forced Stanton to paint clothes over the whip marks on the originals of "The Missing Princess."

Coutts developed a brain tumor in 1961 and was forced to stop his mail-order business. He destroyed his archives and returned to England. Whilst living with his sister, Coutts died in his sleep on the 5th of August 1962.

Jared Harris portrayed him in the recent movie The Notorious Bettie Page.

Gallery

The New York-born fetish photographer Eric Kroll (1946) was already exposed to art in his early childhood. He considers its creator and editor, John Alexander Scott Coutts, aka John Willie, to be the Leonardo da Vinci of Fetish.

Quotations

"Unless a model is a good actress, and has 'that type' of face it's difficult for her to look sad and miserable when working for me. My studio is a pretty cheerful place, and quite unlike the atmosphere that surrounds Gwendoline when the Countess gets hold of her." - John Willie, The Art of John Willie, Sophisticated Bondage - Book Two (Page 1).

"Bizarre. The magazine for pleasant optimists who frown on convention. The magazine of fashions and fantasies fantastic! Innumerable journals deal with ideas for the majority. Must all sheeplike follow in their wake? Bizarre is for those who have the courage of the sown convictions. Conservative? — Old fashioned? — Not by any means! Where does a complete circle begin or end? Anderd doesn't fashion move in a circle? Futuristic? Not even that—there is nothing new in fashion, it is only for the application of new materials—new ornaments—a new process of making—coupled with the taste and ability to create the unusual and unorthodox to the trend of the moment."[10]

"As for sex, ignorance is abysmal because for centuries those who could not satisfy themselves, except by denying pleasure to others, have taught generation after generation that "sex is taboo." Thou shalt not think about it or discuss it. In fact, it's a dreadful thing, but it's all right as long as you don't enjoy it. If you have any other ideas on the subject, you are a pervert. The basis of a decent society is a happy home. Marriages break up almost invariably because of sex. What you do, or does not do, is your own business, all that matters is that the enjoyment be mutual, — and the time to discuss these things is before you get hitched up. There is a partner to suit everyone somewhere, but the search will be difficult until we can discuss our likes and dislikes, openly, in good taste, without threat from our own brand of standardized Police State."

Further reading

  • A John Willie Portfolio, n.1 (a cura di Carl McGuire), Van Nuys, CA., London Ent. Ltd., 1987 showing Willie/Spiderpool link
  • Bizarre: The Complete Reprint of John Willie's Bizarre, Vols. 1-26; isbn 3-8228-9269-6 Taschen. Edited by Eric Kroll.
  • Plusieurs possibilites. Photographies de John Willie, Paris, Futuropolis, 1985
  • The Adventures of Sweet Gwendoline, 2nd Edition isbn 0-914646-48-6. Belier Press, 2nd edition (1999).
  • The Art of John Willie - Sophisticated Bondage (Book One)
    • An illustrated biography edited by Stefano Piselli & Riccardo Morrocchi (128 pages)
  • The Art of John Willie - Sophisticated Bondage (Book Two)
    • An illustrated biography edited by Stefano Piselli & Riccardo Morrocchi (128 pages)
  • The Bound Beauties of Irving Klaw & John Willie, vol 2, Van Nuys, CA., Harmony Comm., 1977
  • The First John Willie Bondage Photo Book, Van Nuys, CA., London Ent. Ltd., 1978
  • The Second John Willie Bondage Photo Book, Van Nuys, CA., London Ent. Ltd., 1978
  • The Works of John Willie (a cura di Peter Stevenson), s.l., s.e., s.d.

See also

Photographers whose work has involved fetishistic elements:


A Personal Note from Robin

Eric Kroll was commissioned by Taschen to complete books on John Willie, Eric Stanton and Bill Ward. Eric spent many days photographically copying books, cover and contents, for inclusion in his books.

In the acknowledgements section of his book on Bill Ward, Eric Kroll writes:

I know I'm going to forget someone. When one works three-plus years on a book project, someone vital gets left out. I made that mistake when doing "The Art of Eric Stanton". I forgot to thank Robin Roberts of BackDrop for letting me photocopy his fantastic library of fetish book and magazines. He invited me back for this book, so I'm doubly grateful.
Eric Kroll

External links

More information is available at [ Wikipedia:John Willie ]


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