Henry Scott Tuke, British
Waiting For His Ship To Come In (The One That’s Presumably Delivering His Pants), 1924
Oil on panel
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/// A youth stares out to sea. Friends are gone
as he sprawls on a rock— nothing on.
Works by Henry Scott Tuke
won’t bring shame or rebuke;
they’re collected by Sir Elton John.
/// The male models that Henry employs
are primarily young men and boys.
Often nude, they don’t touch;
angled not to show much.
He does not portray gay carnal joys.
/// Tuke’s The Bather just bathes in the sun.
Ocean bathing he’s only once done.
Though the water was frigid,
far from coming out rigid,
he emerged shrunk, an object of fun.
/// Is Tuke great? That’s a matter of taste.
Some men think that his skills go to waste.
On the whole they’d prefer
that each he were a her,
and by girls all his boys were replaced.
/// Even so, most art lovers delight
when a well-painted form is in sight.
This youth’s smooth hairless skin
from behind can begin
to seem female (when squinting just right).
/// He’s so young that his voice is still squeaky,
but he loves saying things that seem freaky.
Just an impudent teen
on the gay nude beach scene.
All his British mates say “the boy’s cheeky.”
/// Percy sunbathes with three other jocks,
but he’s just had a series of shocks.
Each guy beefed that it bores
him to hang out outdoors.
His relationships are on the rocks.
/// His close friendships are not really dead.
They’d just rather meet indoors instead.
They don’t like being viewed
on the beach in the nude.
There’s a club with a large tanning bed.
/// Being naked, to Perce, isn’t smut.
He is proud that his body is cut.
But he’ll still join his pals
in that club with no gals.
(Besides, rocks leave weird marks on his butt.)