Asylum, Alexander Kargaltsev

Presumed first edition, first printing, paperback edition. Signed in black ink by the photographer on the half-title page, "Sasha 2012." [Sasha is a diminutive form of Alexander.] Also with a second signature, undeciphered, on that page. Presumed printed and bound in the USA. 9.25 x 9.25 inches. Full-pictorial color wrappers, clean and with unbumped spine head and tail, and sharp corners. Text block firmly bound in. With 54 numbered pages of lightly coated stock. With essays by Stephen Roe and Ivan Savvine. Featuring 16 full-page color photo plates and one full-page duotone plate, and all numbered. All are of nude young men who left Russia seeking asylum in the USA due to Russian persecution of men perceived to be bisexual or gay. Note that on the signature page there is a beige blemish the size of a thumb print near the lower part of the fore edge. Also on the lower fore edge of the remaining pages but generally not on the pages themselves. Else a very clean interior. Downgraded to Very Good Plus on account of the aforementioned beige blemish. Scarce in any condition. 9 oz. This 2012 edition is a coproduction from Alexander Kargaltsev and "287 Spring" Gallery. Kargaltsev [b. 1985] was born in Moscow. He came to New York in 2010 to study at the New York Film Academy. He never returned to Russia after applying for asylum in the United States. As a photographer, Kargaltsev is known for his series of nude male portraiture. He is also a political activist.…