Elska Magazine - Taipei (Taiwan)

By Liam Campbell

When we heard Taipei described as the ‘gay capital of Asia', that was all the convincing we needed! So the Elska team (Liam, assisted by Roman) flew out to Taiwan and spent a week meeting local gay boys and doing photoshoots of each of them. This book shares some of our favourite photographs from the trip as well as a series of stories, some written by Liam based on recollections and diary notes, and some contributed by the men we met in Taipei, presented unedited in their original languages.

Originally the fifth book in the Elska series, for this second edition, the book has been remade from scratch. It includes many previously unseen images, all re-edited, and also many new stories, a new cover, and even a chapter/man who wasn't included in the first edition. So, if you happened to own the original, we think this is still worth your rediscovery.

Inside Elska Taipei, readers are introduced to fifteen local Taiwanese subjects who you are encouraged to get to know through a combination of honest photography and personal storytelling. Each of the men we met was photographed in their city streets and/or at home, dressed in their own style and sometimes not dressed at all. The photography is a sort of queer documentary style, with a goal to capture these men honestly and candidly, reflecting their personalities, style and the mood of the moment. The accompanying texts then aim to bring you closer to these men and give some sense of what it's like to spend time in the ‘gay capital of Asia'.

‘Elska Taipei’ features fourteen chapters, dedicated to the following local elskans: Toto S, Rhenz T, Walter J, Mine H, Gemi Sakinu Z, Michael B, Owen C, Temelalj C, Austin W, Chris C, Jo’i D, Han L, Henry L, Joseph W and Justin L.

Includes texts in English, Mandarin Chinese, and Tagalog.

We also recommend ordering our companion publication, ‘Elska Ekstra Taipei’, available separately or as part of the ‘bundle’. Inside you'll find three more men and their stories. You'll also find hundreds of outtakes of all our Taipei elskans, plus a few more behind the scenes tales and anecdotes. Finally, you'll find a special feature on how we chose our cover art and why we chose to bring back our Taipei series.

Details and Specs:

‘Elska Taipei’ is 170mm x 240mm (approx 6.7 x 9.4 in), 164 pages, full colour, sewn-bound, offset-printed, with 280gsm textured coated coverage paper and flaps that hide an Easter egg and soft and sexy matte 115gsm internal paper.