Belgian photographer Bert Van Pelt doesn’t treat the male form as an object to be admired from a distance. His work asks you to look closer, to sit with what it means to inhabit a body that carries history, tension, and release. Across his growing catalog, Van Pelt uses male nudity not as provocation for provocation’s sake, but as a language, one rooted in expression, presence, and lived experience.
There’s something deeply arresting about the way Van Pelt photographs bodies. The physique of each model is presented with clarity and candor, allowing vulnerability and strength to coexist in the same frame. His eye for creative direction stands out immediately, especially in the way he plays with contemporary techniques and confident color choices. These aren’t static images meant to be skimmed; they demand attention and reward it.
Art Shaped by Late Self-Discovery
Van Pelt’s artistic evolution is inseparable from his personal story. He came out at 37, a turning point that reshaped both his life and his creative focus. That transition, from what he describes as a straight universe into a gay one, was disorienting and hopeful all at once. Those emotions surface in his earlier work, which grapples with identity and uncertainty, while his more recent projects reflect acceptance and desire without apology.
Photography became a form of personal expansion for Van Pelt. Through it, he found confidence, connection, and a way to communicate beyond words. Like many artists working with the nude form, he cites Robert Mapplethorpe as a reference point, alongside contemporary photographers shaping today’s visual culture online. Still, Van Pelt’s voice feels distinctly his own.
Where Motion Meets the Body
One series that stopped me in my tracks is (e)MOTION. The project features models captured in fluid poses, layered and repeated, many of them adorned in pink polka dots that feel playful yet deliberate. There’s a physicality here that pulls you in. You become aware of balance, flexibility, and control. The effect borders on hypnotic. Watching these forms overlap, you begin to appreciate not only the visual rhythm, but the sheer athletic ability on display. There’s an almost invincible energy running through the work.
Van Pelt developed the series using film footage submitted by models from around the world, later superimposing images to extend the sense of movement. The result blurs the line between still photography and motion study, giving the body a sense of momentum rather than finality.
Heat, Color, and Tension
His Burning series takes a different approach. Neon tones and heavily processed visuals surround naked male bodies that appear suspended within color itself. The images feel both confrontational and inviting. The figures seem to dissolve into their surroundings, yet their skin provides warmth and grounding. It’s a contrast that creates curiosity instead of distance.
One standout image from the series features a model captured in a moment of physical strain, photographed quickly and instinctively. Van Pelt later inverted the image and placed it against a yellow field, transforming the scene into something strikingly modern. It’s a reminder that his most compelling work often comes from trusting the moment.
Art, Ambiguity, and Audience
Van Pelt doesn’t shy away from questions around eroticism. He acknowledges that interpretation lives with the viewer. What feels sensual to one person may read as explicit to another. That ambiguity is intentional. For him, art and pornography aren’t always opposing forces, and the overlap can be productive rather than limiting.
While social media plays a role in visibility, he doesn’t see it as the place for full context. His work is meant to be experienced in series, whether on gallery walls or within the pages of a book, where meaning can unfold without distraction.
At its core, Van Pelt’s photography is about connection, between body and viewer, artist and subject, movement and stillness. His hope is simple and expansive: that the work resonates beyond any one community, opening doors to understanding, curiosity, and acceptance along the way.
To see the full gallery and explore more stories like this, Gayety’s Substack has you covered.
