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OF ALL THE humble, nondescript dining chairs in the world, this one must be the luckiest. It's treated like a star, is never photographed in unflattering light and gets sat on by some of the most sculpted buttocks in Australia. The chair's nominal owner is DrewMartyn, a Melbourne-based photographer whose Chairman series has been sitting pretty in galleries and dining rooms across the country.

The idea originally came from a friend who asked Martyn to photograph him before he turned the dreaded 40. The chair was used as a spontaneous prop but as more people heard about its suitability as a co-star the busier Martyn became. Soon the private, interior shoots became more adventurous as both the photographer and his subjects explored the possibilities of locations across the city.

Luckily for the viewer, neither the chair nor Martyn's models show particular interest in any laws regarding public nudity, and the result is an erotic combination of men and man-made structures.

Some of the more striking of these shots were taken at the old Melbourne city square a matter of days before the area was bulldozed to make way for a new hotel. The stark geometry of the location is in a marked contrast to the model's leonine grace, and a vibrant water feature becomes the backdrop to display his unashamedly muscular stride.

"The shoot took place on a Sunday morning," Martyn explains, "and despite a few stares from passers-by the model wasn't phased. He 's very comfortable with his body." Some of his models are more circumspect than others about stripping off as soon as the shoot starts, but there's a reason why Martyn always encourages a quick strip. "Sometimes it takes a while for the elastic marks to disappear."

Martyn seems drawn to sites that are under threat of demolition, and this interest has seen him use locations such as old brick kilns and gelatine factories for subsequent shoots. The only omnipresent fixture is the chair, and the ongoing interest for the viewer is how each model will interact with its familiar presence.

One model decided to add a personal touch by bringing his favourite pair of handcuffs to the shoot while another decided on a different approach altogether. "He had this fantasy about being photographed," Martyn says, "and asked me to pick him up from a car park, put a hood on him, then take him wherever I wanted. It was an interesting assignment."

Martyn says we can expect more of the same in an upcoming series, and yes, the chair will continue to have a starring role. After all, it guarantees bums on seats. B

www.drewmartyn.com