Drag King Revolution - for The Sleek Magazine
Portraits of drag acts at the largest drag king contest in Europe
The past few years have seen drag queens take the world by storm, becoming household names and finding their faces slapped on everything from cushions to Primark t-shirts. But now there’s a new batch of drag performers on the rise - meet the drag KINGS.
Having documented drag queen performers in his project Queens at Home, photographer Jan Klos was granted backstage access to the final of the biggest Drag King contest in the world - Man Up!, the brainchild of legendary queer pub The Glory. Weeks of competition heats saw kings battle one another with eye-grabbing lip-syncs, comedy routines and political performances, eventually being whittled down to sixteen finalists.
Shot throughout the night, the portraits showcase the range of performers and masculinity in its various forms - some of it sexual, some of it comical, some of it inspired by male pop stars and some of it a playful homage to masculinity at a particular point in history.
This month London celebrates Pride, and what better way to do that than to showcase the new wave of LGBT+ performers who are shaping the future.
Photography and art direction: Jan Klos
Photographer's assistant: Tony Grangeon
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origianlly appeared on SLEEK-MAG.COM
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