David Delderfield

Biography

Architecture and nudes

by Tony Esposito

Born and raised in the south of Ontario, David Delderfield first attractions were more inclined towards architecture and art history He moved to Montreal in 1988 to live with his lover. While working in an office during the day, he photographed friends at night. While he was a member of the gay sport assocation, Equipe Montreal, a project started shaping to eventually be in full bloom in 1994: a black a white calendar of 16 months with members of Equipe Montreal as models. An exhibit of 65 photos was presented at Montreal's restaurant Le Clandestin, just before the launching of the calendar. The adventure was interesting, but left him with a bitter aftertaste. The original project had three equal partners: Equipe Montreal, ILGA and David. But the sales of the calendars were taken in charge only by David.

Luckily, Mandate International got interested in the project and put an ad in its edition. That provided buyers from all over the world. The magazine Attitudes Montreal published other images of Delderfield during its brief life. But it is by winning the 5018's bathouse photo contest that Delderfield's images became known. He got the third place in 1994, the second in 1995 and finaly two prizes in 1996: first in the Internet category and second in the usual division. These images are regularly used for the publicity of the bathouse.
Because of his architecture studies, David Delderfield often shows a particular research between the model and the background. Textures, details like the style of a window or brick pattern become important elements in his pictorial compositions. He likes to associate the city with eroticism, using unusual spaces: high building roofs, abandoned houses, public parks. His style can be defined by a high black and white contrast, using the shadows to give a sensual effect. By making body parts disappear in a deep black, he accentuates the eroticism of muscles.

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