Peter Berlin

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Peter Berlin (born December 28, 1942 as Armin Hagen von Hoyningen-Huene in Litzmannstadt , German Reich ) is a German male model , draftsman and photographer who became known in the gay subculture in the 1970s .

biography

The great-nephew of the American fashion photographer George Hoyningen-Huene spent his youth in Germany . Armin grew up in Berlin as a scion of the impoverished German-Baltic noble family Hoyningen-Huene . He worked u. a. as an illustrator , tailor and photographer. In his mid-twenties he worked for the German TV magazine VIP-Schaukel and photographed international celebrities such as Catherine Deneuve , Alfred Hitchcock , Klaus Kinski and Brigitte Bardot .

His passion was self-portraits with specially tailored erotic clothing. He also wore the extremely figure-hugging outfits when cruising in Berlin parks and train stations at night . He emigrated to the United States in the early 1970s . In his adopted home of San Francisco , he became one of the better-known eccentrics on Polk Street as "Peter Burian" . When the lawyer of the German actor Peter Burian threatened him with a lawsuit in 1971 because of the use of this name as a pseudonym , he changed his stage name to "Peter Berlin".

Movies

In 1972, in collaboration with photographer friend Richard Abel alias “Ignatio Rutkowski”, the 16-mm strip Post Haste Hustle was created, in which Berlin played the leading role. At the request of the distributor, the incomprehensible title was changed to Nights in Black Leather . In 1974, the successful film That Boy followed , completely self-directed (book, production, direction, leading role). In the mid- seventies he produced the four short films Blueboys (his longtime friend Marc Majors played a supporting role), Waldeslust, Ciro and Peter and Search . In February 1975, After Dark magazine printed the eight-page portfolio series Creating Peter Berlin .

With essentially only two pornographic films and his idiosyncratic self-portraits, Peter Berlin managed to become a sex symbol for an entire generation of homosexuals. He maintained relationships with well-known people, including Rudolf Nureyev . Important artists such as Tom of Finland , Robert Mapplethorpe and Andy Warhol used it as a template for drawings and photos.

photography

Peter Berlin lived mainly from the sale of his drawings and photographs. In 1986 Mapplethorpe curated the provocative exhibition Split / Vision in New York City . During this time, he gained great popularity beyond the gay scene. Since the AIDS epidemic has been particularly rampant in San Francisco since the mid-1980s , Berlin had to witness the deaths of many close friends and acquaintances. According to his own statement, this led to depression and a freely chosen hermit existence. For almost 20 years he lived in an extremely secluded life in an apartment building near the Castro district . The French teacher and nude photographer Biron became a close supporter.

In 2002 he met fellow photographer Henning von Berg . Fascinated by the partially parallel biographies, a friendship developed. Gradually began a gradual return to the public for Peter Berlin. In 2005, director Jim Tushinski and co-producer Lawrence Helman shot the documentary That Man: Peter Berlin (German: The Peter Berlin Story ), which won awards at international film festivals. The New York Leslie / Lohman Gallery dedicated the much-acclaimed exhibition Berlin on Berlin to him in 2006 . The DVD Nights in Black Leather was named “Best Classic DVD Release” at the GayVN Awards 2007 and was inducted into the Hall of Fame.

Filmography

  • 1972: Nights in Black Leather
  • 1974: That Boy
  • Short films Blueboys, Waldeslust, Ciro and Peter, Search
  • 2005: That Man: Peter Berlin ( The Peter Berlin Story , Documentation)

Honors

  • 2007 - GayVN Awards , Category "2007 GayVN Hall of Fame Inductees"

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Berlin, Peter
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Hoyningen-Huene, Armin Hagen Baron von (real name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German nude photographer, porn producer and actor
DATE OF BIRTH December 28, 1942
PLACE OF BIRTH Litzmannstadt