in a Mormon town or falling in love on a road trip
through Ukraine are a frank account of gender
transition, a diatribe against homophobic society
in Northern Ireland and even a lusty poem about
foreskins!
“When I originally started Elska, my goal was simply
to combine my love of travel, photography and
men” says Elska editor and chief photographer Liam
Campbell. “For the first issue, I flew to Lviv, Ukraine
and hoped to meet three or four local guys who I
would photograph in the city and then publish some
sort of little staple-bound zine. But everything just
sort of exploded. I actually met twelve guys there and
I ended up doing at-home nude portraits as well as
vaguely editorial-style street shoots. Because of all
this extra content, I had to expand my project into
something more like a book. And then I had the idea
to include stories, both my own chronicles about my
journeys as well as stories contributed by the men I
met, which made the publication grow even larger.”
“I am immensely grateful that Elska resonated so
well, which has enabled me to keep going for all
these years,” continues Liam. “I am also proud that
I’ve been able to do my work in my own way,
publishing real rather than sensational stories and
presenting images of regular people rather than
those who fit within the confines of conventional
beauty standards. I’ve always found ordinary
people more compelling, and I’m glad, as well
as a little surprised, that so many others share
my perspective. Because of them, I’ve been able
to take my project to over fifty cities around the
world so far.”
Elska's roster includes books made in well-known
and lesser-known places, as well as in gay-friendly
and not so gay-friendly societies. Cities on every
continent of the world except Antarctica have
been featured, including: Odesa (Ukraine), Buenos
Aires (Argentina), Chisinau (Moldova), Taipei
(Taiwan), Tbilisi (Georgia), San Francisco (California),
Almaty (Kazakhstan), Cape Town (South Africa),
Melbourne (Australia) and Dhaka (Bangladesh).
When combined, a total of 827 different men have
taken part in for Elska, and many more are on the
way.
Elska print books, including the new ‘Ten Years
of Elska: Special Retrospective’ are sold in select
shops around the world and for order online. Also
available are e-books, art prints, postcard sets and
annual subscriptions, which include six books per
year.
More information can be found on the Elska website, www.elskamagazine.com