Elska Magazine highlights the men of Atlanta and Montréal
Recently, Elska Magazine, a publication dedicated to highlighting the diverse bodies and stories of LGBTQ+ men in communities around the globe, put their spotlight on Atlanta and Montréal.
The last time we reported about a new Elska edition, it was when they chose to highlight the men of Toronto, Canada. They have released two issues since then — Atlanta in October of 2021 and now Montréal, which was released this month.
Elska Atlanta
Atlanta is popularly known as the Black Gay Capital of America (or even the world), and rightly so. The city has become somewhat of a mecca, not just for Black gay men, but even for the Black film industry. In recent years, Black filmmaker Tyler Perry opened the largest film studio in the country in Atlanta, while many Black LGBTQ businesses call the city home.
Shot in the aftermath of an extremely politically charged year, where Atlanta and the work of Stacey Abrams almost single-handedly led to the defeat of Donald Trump, this was a great time to celebrate the city with an Elska spotlight. Each of the men we met in the city were free to introduce themselves in any way they wanted – they could wear whatever they wanted, if anything, and in their stories they could write about absolutely anything.
“I always had a feeling that we might one day come to Atlanta to make an issue,” says Elska editor and chief photographer Liam Campbell to The Advocate. “And although it was the political ‘blue-ification’ of Georgia that was the spark for coming now, our original inspiration had more to do with Black Lives Matter. I recognise that many people see Elska as a project about promoting diversity and I wanted to find a place where Black gay bodies and voices could be a majority, not a minority. That was Atlanta.”
Elska Atlanta features the images of / stories from: Anthony S, Eric M, Ivan C, Estafi, Devlin J, TeeJ, Aaron D, Jimmy E, Jacob L, Ronald R, Orlando P Jr, Blaine P.
Elska Atlanta is 196 pages. The print version is 170mm x 240mm (approx 6.7 x 9.4 in), full colour, sewn-bound, offset-printed, and on 130gsm (90lb) internal matte paper and 280gsm (110lb) textured coated coverage paper with flaps. One random Elska Collectors’ Postcard is inserted inside.
The companion e-zine Elska Ekstra Atlanta, available separately or as part of the ‘Bundle’, to get loads more content. This includes behind the scenes tales, outtakes, extra stories, and four extra boys: Kevin C, Jordan B, Darnell M, and Ty A.
Elska Montréal
The Montréal edition marks the second time Elska has set its sights on Canada, after recently visiting Toronto. Montréal beat out numerous other gay hotspots like Tel Aviv and San Francisco for the next city to visit. And though this may sound surprising, it really shouldn’t be. In recent years, Montréal has definitely solidified its spot as a very carefree, fun and queer city. According to GScene, it’s one of the greatest places to be queer” and “deserves to be on any gay travel top ten list.”
“Montréal was always one of my personal favourite cities, but I never expected it to be so beloved by our readers,” said Campbell to GScene. “With a ballot that included a huge and diverse range of cities to choose from including the likes of Barcelona, Beijing and even Bishkek, I was surprised by what came out on top. But I guess it wasn’t just me who knew what a fun, free and fabulous city Montréal is.”
He adds: “This is now our thirty-sixth featured city, and it may well have been the most fun photoshoot trip we’ve ever done, with some of the most carefree subjects we’ve ever encountered.”
Elska Montréal is the first ever two-volume issue. As perhaps the most fun and exciting city in Canada, the double-language town deserves nothing less than a double-size Elska. Around twenty men had their photos taken and stories gathered to complete this issue, and the results reveal some of the most open, carefree, and thoughtful men they’ve met anywhere.
Beyond the stories, the photography reveals honest and candid images of the men in their city’s streets and in their own homes. Here you’ll find a lot of maple leaves, a bunch of dépanneurs, a fair few poutineries, ruelle verte after ruelle verte, and also an insane amount of nudity. Just some of the reasons why this Elska series is vraiment exceptionnel!
Elska Montréal features seventeen chapters split between two volumes. The vol.1 mag features chapters dedicated the following local participants: Max G, Jeremy S, Ricky G, Vincent L, Erik B + Thibaut T, Kaelen S, Lane B, and Benoit A; the vol.2 mag features Ian M, Princepal S, Maxime C, Jérôme S + David F, Jonathan T, Thierry H, Antoine L, Tal K, and Logan W.
The companion e-zine Elska Ekstra Montréal, available separately, to get more exclusive content. This includes loads of outtakes, behind the scenes tales, an extra guy, and features on our charity polaroids project and on how we chose our covers. The e-versions of Elska Montréal vol.1 and Elska Montréal vol.2 are 172 pages each. Stories in English and French (followed by English translations) are included.
Elska Atlanta and Elska Montreal are both available at select stores around the world and online at elskamagazine.com.
For more information, including subscriptions and purchasing, visit elskamagazine.com.
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All photos courtesy of Elska Magazine.
