#QueerQuote: “All Photographs are Accurate. None of Them is the Truth.” – Richard Avedon

By Stephen Rutledge on May 15, 2022 2:02 pm

What do Jean Genet, Jimmy Durante, Brigitte Bardot, Georgia O'Keeffe, Jacques Cousteau, Andy Warhol, and Lena Horne have in common? They are just a few of the many personalities immortalized on film by photographer Richard Avedon. For 50+ years, Avedon's portraits filled the … [Read more...]

#BornThisDay: Thomas Wedgwood, the First Photographer

By Stephen Rutledge on May 14, 2022 3:03 am

May 14, 1771 - Thomas Wedgwood: "Take a picture, it will last longer!" An Englishman, Wedgwood was an early experimenter in the field of photography. He is the first person known to have thought of creating permanent pictures by capturing camera images on material coated … [Read more...]

How Celeb Photog Mike Ruiz is Keeping Kink Current with NFT Photo “Leathermen Project”

By Paisley Dalton on April 19, 2022 10:25 am

Celeb photog Mike Ruiz, who has been featured on RuPaul's Drag Race, America's Next Top Model, Canada's Next Top Model, and more, has started an ongoing series to highlight the beauty and diversity of the leather … [Read more...]

#BornThisDay: Fashion Icon, Carrie Donovan

By Stephen Rutledge on March 22, 2022 3:03 am

Screen-Grab via YouTube March 22, 1928 – Carrie Donovan: "I love being by myself." Throughout history, gay men and straight women have enjoyed a level of intimacy between two humans that rival even that of the most star-crossed of lovers. The formula is an older … [Read more...]

#Resist: The Drag Story Behind “Flower Power”, the Iconic Photograph from 1967

By Stephen Rutledge on March 4, 2022 12:12 pm

Photo by Bernie Boston via Wikipedia Commons Flower Power is an iconic photograph taken by Bernie Boston (1933- 2008) a photographer for the Washington Star newspaper, a publication that is no longer with us. It was shot on October 21, 1967, during the National … [Read more...]

#FlashBack72: 50 Years Ago Burt Reynolds Got Naked for Cosmopolitan Magazine

By Stephen Rutledge on February 11, 2022 2:30 pm

Photo by Scavullo, via YouTube Burt Reynolds (1936 – 2018), stretched out on a bearskin rug, tanned, and much like the beast beneath him, he is very, very hairy. Veins bulge on his arms, one of which is conveniently placed in front of his special place. He looks amused. … [Read more...]

Carol Channing, Cover Girl

By Stephen Rutledge on January 31, 2022 3:08 am

In our current era, thanks to that Internet, print magazines are disappearing. Between 2012 and 2022, the number of magazines bought from newsstands has gone down 60%. Yet a striking image and a few well-chosen words still have the power to move and influence. Who can forget the … [Read more...]

#BornThisDay: Artist, Paul Cadmus

By Stephen Rutledge on December 17, 2021 3:03 am

Photo by George Petrakes from Paul Cadmus: Enfant Terrible At 80, David Sutherland Productions, via YouTube December 17, 1904– Paul Cadmus: "I think artists are much freer than other people." He is one of those influential gay American artists of all time. His take … [Read more...]

#BornThisDay: Fashion Photographer, John Rawlings

By Stephen Rutledge on November 18, 2021 3:03 am

Self-Portrait of John Rawlings, November 18, 1912 – Jack Rawlings He was an innovative and important fashion and commercial photographer. He was born John Wesley Rawlings in Ohio. He studied at Wesleyan University and moved to New York City after graduating in 1930, … [Read more...]

#BornThisDay: Photographer, Robert Mapplethorpe

By Stephen Rutledge on November 5, 2021 3:03 am

November 5, 1946 - Robert Mapplethorpe: “I want to see the devil in us all. That’s my real turn on.” In January 2016, the astonishingly good documentary, Mapplethorpe: Look At The Pictures, directed by the talented World of Wonder founders Fenton … [Read more...]