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Ronald Staines
A society photographer connecting erotic images, camp, celebrity, and queer archives.
To create, collect, and enjoy stylish and erotic images while remaining central to his social world.
The book

Who they are in the book
Spoiler-freeStaines is a successful society photographer in Charles’s long gay social world.
He delights in gossip, visual style, erotic staging, and preserving images.
The final Firbank film is watched at his home.
How the book draws them
- FlamboyantDress and speech make him socially vivid.
- VisualPhotography turns looking into profession and power.
- EroticizingHis images participate in the objectification of bodies.
- ArchivalHis home preserves film linking queer generations.
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