New Jersey based photographer Mike Ruiz, who has been featured on America’s and Canada’s Next Top Model, RuPaul’s Drag Race, along with dozens of other television appearances, has started an ongoing series to highlight the beauty and diversity of the leather community to show that it’s not about just wearing leather or kinky sex.

The Ongoing Series’ Goal Is To Shine More Light On A Community That Has Contributed So Much To LGBTQ History     

Leather is an outer manifestation of an inner truth. We aren’t leathermen because we wear leather; we wear leather because we are already leathermen. We just want others to see it so they can know too. EDGE

According to Ruiz: “It’s about a community of men who form a very strong brotherhood with a rich history rooted in community service and inclusion dating back to the 60s. The more I learned, the more I wanted to know. I figured the only way to get an accurate account was to go to the sources.”

The Covid-19 pandemic exacerbated an existing problem; the diminishing of queer communities and their spaces, which were already starting to become sanitized and assimilated into the main-stream culture. With this, Ruiz focused on a community that he himself wanted to explore his entire life. Without shame or apprehension he embarked on this project to experience liberation that he hadn’t known before.

The leather gives me a real second skin, it makes me feel strong , safe , and it empower my desire ,sexuality and soften my darker side of being. GEERT

Ruiz had an open call in October of 2021 to leather men of all ages, races, sizes and backgrounds to appear in this series. After reaching out to members of the community through social media and word of mouth, many men volunteered, seeing the importance of sharing their love of leather and what it means to them. According to one of the models in the series Cody Troy.

Leather is my second skin, my alter ego. There is power in leather. I
am standing in the boots of the queer rebels and outsiders who came
before me and carrying that power forward. NICK 

“There is a ritualistic side of donning your gear, and the respect you place on it, that makes me want to show that respect every time I step out the door. For me, leather isn’t just a look, a piece of clothing, or a fetish, but a way of life that has profoundly changed mine.”

During his travels, meeting, and bonding with these men Ruiz saw how free and empowered they are which granted him power to let go of a lot of his own personal hang-ups about sex and relationships. Much of the project happens while the camera is sat down. Talking to the men while they prepare their formals, polish their boots and light their cigars, Ruiz listens to them as they discuss the mental changes that happen while they get dressed and how impactful this part of the process really is to the final image that is presented.

Ruiz plans to continue the series by taking more portraits of Leather Men and collecting their stories. As the series grows and evolves, so will the discussion and understanding of what it means to be wear leather as a form of self identification instead of just a sexual practice. The project will culminate in a book and multiple gallery showings. Ruiz hopes that more than anything the project will become a time capsule that will keep the leather community’s rich history and traditions alive for a long time to come.

#GayNrd asked Ruiz a few questions.

WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO BEGIN THIS PROJECT? This project was born out of my deep desire to explore a part of myself that has been underlying my entire life. After a year of pandemic-induced introspection, I realized that I had been denying a part of myself mostly out of self-imposed shame. You see, as a gay man, I’ve lived through the toxic shame of being gay, being attracted to men, having sex with men not to mention body shame. I decided that once I was vaccinated, I would explore these things without embarrassment or apprehension.  And I did! I sought out ways to experience a sexual liberation that I hadn’t known before which included kink. Not only was it intoxicating, it was actually therapeutic.  From that I was introduced to the leather community and some of it’s history. I discovered that being a leather man wasn’t only about wearing leather or kinky sex. It’s about a community of men who form a very strong brotherhood with a rich history rooted in community service and inclusion dating back to the 60s. The more I learned, the more I wanted to know. I figured the only way to get an accurate account was to go to the sources. I wanted to do something that would satisfy my personal interests and celebrate these men in the process.

What is it about leather and leather men that is so attractive/inspiring to you? To me, it/they denote sexual freedom and authority. There is something raw and carnal about the uniform and what it represents. Much like many gay men, I’ve always been hugely inspired by the hyper masculine aesthetic of Tom Of Finland’s art. Not only have I tried to adopt it for myself but it’s manifested in my work as a photographer from the earliest days of my career. Having come of age in the 80s , I understood the need to present as hyper-masculine as  a way to compensate for being gay but as much as I was turned on by the leather man aesthetic, I was too riddled with shame about sex to embrace it. I was aroused by it but was terrified of it. Arousal ultimately won that internal struggle at the age of 56 and now I’m consumed by it!!! Fortunately, I can work out a lot of my stuff through my work. Photographing all of these men is so satisfying to me in so many ways beyond creative gratification. 

“As somebody who was born in a conservative society, feeling the necessity of wearing leather was always an unfulfilled part of who I felt I was. After my first trip to Berlin, 7 years ago, I discovered people like me, men who went to work in leather, who walked their dogs in full leather gear. I realized I was not the freak friends told me I was. Today I am proud to have a closet full of my own gear, from harnesses to boots, from jackets to jockstraps. I wear something leather every day of my life. Leather is who I am”. PABLO

How were you able to find so many well respected men from the leather community to participate in your project? It was a combination of throwing out a broad net by making a post on social media and the help and guidance of a couple of well-respected Leathermen whom I had befriended prior embarking on this project. 

“My leather journey has taught me “To live freely, you must love freely”. During my time as Mr NJ Leather and ever since, I find leather has enabled me to get in touch with ‘ my spiritual self ‘. I find it a very intimate way to transcend the physical self and reach the spiritual self. It has been challenging to grow beyond the very narrow way I was raised.   I want to help others with that journey and have written a book soon to be available on the subject, ‘Sexual Energy, Spiritual Power.” ROB

How has this project impacted you personally? When I started this, I could never have anticipated how personal it would become. Firstly, I’ve met and bonded with some incredible men . Also, by seeing how free and empowered they are is empowering to me. As this progresses, it’s helping me let go of a lot of hang ups that I’ve had about sex and relationships. Also, so many of the men have been so supportive and understanding of my self exploration journey. 

Becoming a Leatherman in 1991 was a defining moment in my life.  It was the first time I was truly accepted for exactly who I was.  Not for what I should be, or could be, or owed to others; but for exactly who I was at that moment.  For a mixed race young gay man from a conservative background and religious upbringing, this acceptance was unprecedented.  I hope that by mentoring within the leather community, I continue to promote the pillars of Philanthropy, Education, and Inclusion, and make those who have worked so hard and gone before me, proud of what we have done.  Coming out of the shadows and into myself, I am proud of the leathers I wear, what it represents, and excited for where it will lead me. MICK

How do you think this project is impacting the men you are photographing? I couldn’t tell you. You might have to ask them. What I have observed, however, is how it’s created a network of leathermen who are only connected by this project. Unwittingly being that conduit is really gratifying for me. Also, I’ve been getting a lot of really heartfelt emails form leather men from around the world telling me how powerful it is to see men like them being represented. This gentleman from Sao Paulo, Brazil has allowed me to share his email which is representative of so many that I’ve received.

“First, I would like to say what a beautiful job it is.  beautiful photos, beautiful looking at these men, for the emotion and if all that it takes us, beautiful collection that makes us travel in a whirlwind of emotions and feelings.  my humble congratulations

Unfortunately we’re not very close, I say now in a physical way, because a lot brings us together in some way and your photos, your profile and your words made me believe that I’m not alone, we’re not alone and we’re not here.  Feel free to quote me, or use any part of me as something that really made me very happy tonight.”

@alex_lthr_

WHAT WILL THE FINAL RESULT BE FROM THIS PROJECT?  I definitely would like to do a book and a gallery show or 2, both of which seem very likely at this point. Who knows what else will come from this. I hope that this project will become a time capsule that will keep the leather community’s  rich history alive for a long time to come. As it progresses, so many men are wanting to participate. As long as there is interest I will keep going. 

YOU ARE STAUNCH ANIMAL ACTIVIST. HOW DO YOU RECONCILE YOUR ADVOCACY FOR ANIMALS AND LEATHER?  It is possible to have very diverse interests simultaneously. One does not preclude the other. I’m a complex person with varied ideals, interests and proclivities. I’m hoping that they will all converge conflict free.  Also, It’s not only about the wardrobe for me. I’m drawn mostly to the mindset and the approach to living and loving. 

WHAT DO YOU HOPE TO ACCOMPLISH WITH THIS PROJECT? Ultimately I’m hoping to shine more light on a beautiful community that has contributed so much to LGBTQ history. 

The Leatherman Project By Mike Ruiz has already gained traction with features in PhotoBook Magazine and Slick Magazine.

About Mike Ruiz: Mike Ruiz is an international acclaimed celebrity and fashion photographer working for over 30 years. He has been featured both in-front and behind the camera for OUT magazine. He is the current creative director and principle photographer for L’Officiel Fashion Book Australia, L’Officiel Fashion Book Monte Carlo and Photobook Magazine. Mike Is also involved in philanthropic organizations such as The Trevor Project, It Gets Better Campaign, Project Angel Food, and his own yearly calendar benefiting abused, neglected or discarded animals.