Mano Martinez on the Beauty of Bodies, Bus Rides, and Being Bold
Photographer and Spanish native Mano Martinez doesn't reflect on his childhood with the carefree nostalgia many adults are lucky enough to recall.
Photographer and Spanish native Mano Martinez doesn't reflect on his childhood with the carefree nostalgia many adults are lucky enough to recall.
Instead, he remembers his early years as a time of mental and emotional anguish, born into poverty and merely trying to exist.
Growing up in Terrassa, a former textile hub near Barcelona, his adolescent memories are marked by unrelenting bullying at school, on the street, and even at home. But the pain of being different led to resilience that often defines the queer experience.
"All of this profoundly shaped my personality," he says. "It made me a hypersensitive and very strong man in equal measure."
While attending a private school that his parents struggled to afford, Mano found his chosen family — a collective of outcasts and the kind of people who embrace each other's unique values.
It was there that Mano's artistic gifts were nurtured as an early talent for drawing emerged, offering direction down a creative path that would eventually lead him to photography.
In the mid-nineties, Mano relocated to Barcelona. A move that would create a distinct split in the timeline of this life. "My life is divided into two parts: before and after arriving in Barcelona," he says. Clubs, fashion, electronic music, and art exploded with inspiration all around him.
A few years later, he looked in the mirror and said, "Girl, you're worth a lot." He then quit his job and enrolled in photography school.
Domestic Light and Unfiltered Bodies
To say Manos's work is raw would be an understatement.
Every photograph is captured in natural light, often in domestic settings, and never retouched. "What I show is exactly as it comes out of my camera," he says. Photography isn't just an artistic medium for him—it's a philosophical stance. His images challenge the assumption that nudity must be sexual or polished, protesting censorship as a champion for authenticity.
Though much of his work involves naked bodies, Mano rejects the idea that nude portraiture is solely about desire. In fact, he intentionally removes the gaze of his models in many shots, instead focusing on form. "That allows me to objectify them and turn them into things," he says. A bold reversal of the usual rules, where men are often the viewers, not the viewed.
In Mano's world, the male body becomes what women have long been: aestheticized objects. But here, the objectification is intentional and, in some ways, liberating.
The settings vary — from bedrooms and gyms to abandoned pools and vintage buses — but the mood remains consistent: intimate and unguarded. Whether shooting longtime friends, actors, or adult film models, Mano seeks spaces that make his subjects feel at ease. "I like chiaroscuro, textures, and above all, a space where the model feels safe and protected," he explains.
Stories Behind the Frames
Every image in Mano's archive has a story, and some feel pulled straight from a queer art-house film. One standout series — set inside a 1969 vintage bus — came from a chance encounter with a model named Nil, whom he met online in 2018.
Nil led him to a family-owned bus garage outside Barcelona, where they shot a stunning, improvised set inside the retro vehicle. The images became part of his debut solo exhibition, launching both artist and muse into new stages of their careers.
Then there's the unplanned image of acrobat Nick Beyeler, captured mid-movement as he plucks a shard of glass from his foot during a shoot in a crumbling pool complex. "He didn't even notice," Mano says. "He found out about the photo some time later, when I asked him for permission to show it." The photo became one of his most recognized works — a beautiful portrait of pain and poise.
For Mano, beauty has always come second to honesty. Early in his career, he photographed men he found attractive. But now, he focuses on a broader spectrum of bodies, less interested in eroticism and more drawn to mood. "I continue taking photos thinking only of myself, not of others," he says, "but no longer in an erotic restlessness."
To see images from Mano’s archive and continue reading our interview, subscribe to Gayety today. Your support allows us to continue sourcing and showcasing queer artists and their work as it was intended to be seen — uncensored.
