Lights! Camera! Submission!

“A lot of our relationships are based on control and domination: the professional, the lovers, the kinds of social relationships, so there’s lots of submission from that,” says photographer Drasko Bogdanovic. “These days, with equality and what’s going on with marriage rights and all of that, I think there is a bit of a disappearance. We kind of blend in with everybody else. We forget why we were, or why we are, discriminated against, and it’s because of our sexuality. It’s because of the sex we enjoy.

“For me it’s very important to bring that back. To show we are still sexual and this is part of our life. This is what we do on the weekends, or what we wish we could do on the weekends.” The prolific Serbian-Canadian photographer will bring those fantasies to life in his latest photography exhibit, Submission.

The exhibit finds a home in an unconventional space; it will take over a section of Buddies in Bad Times Theatre, transforming it into what Bogdanovic believes will be unlike any gallery opening in Toronto. “It’s a theatre space; they’ve never exhibited any work, any photography before,” he explains. “They’re not known for gallery exhibitions there. So the space itself invites a stronger experience than just a gallery opening. We can create whatever we want; it’s a place of fantasy, and it really extends what an exhibition normally is into an installation or theatre experience.”

Bogdanovich started doing digital photography about six years ago, in a movement away from architecture and landscape photography. He credits his boyfriend at the time as his inspiration for shifting focus to erotic shoots. “Photography for me is a lot about voyeurism and exhibitionism,” he says. “That whole sexuality part can easily play into that.” He explains that after he was discovered by La Petite Mort Gallery in Ottawa, going on to be featured in numerous exhibitions and solo shows, guys would contact him hoping to be a part of his work. “There is a lot of vulnerability involved,” he explains. “I find it almost a psychological process. It takes a lot of guts for these guys to do it, and I find it very exciting.”

“I wasn’t sure what to expect. Would I go totally naked? Would there be tension? I thought to myself, Let’s keep it tame — smalls steps, right?” says Submission model Simon, on his experience in front of Bogdanovic’s camera. “He first had me put on this pair of little white shorts, and once I got under the lights this whole exhibitionist side of me came out. They didn’t stay on very long. . .” For some, like Simon, there are levels of vulnerability, while for other models, like Fenn, trust is instinctual and exposure isn’t a problem. “I am not really a shy person — anyone who knows me has now started laughing very hard due to the obvious nature of this statement,” Fenn says. “I don’t think there is anything wrong with sex or nudity, so I don’t have a sense of shame that might incite vulnerability. Besides, confidence is sexy.”

Bogdanovic approaches each shoot like he would a sexual relationship. “I like to communicate a lot and meet guys beforehand to discuss what their limits are,” he explains. “Some guys are okay with getting completely naked. Some guys want to be in their underwear. Some guys don’t want to show their faces. So everybody has their own limits. I like to know that so I know what I’m working with. I don’t pressure these guys or push them to do something they’re not comfortable with. There are boundaries, of course.”

According to Scott, another Submission model, when working with Bogdanovic, the trust that develops is due not only to the artist, but to the art. “This is easy with Drasko, because I trust the integrity of his work,” says Scott. “I think it has to start with the work. He has a clear, honest vision that I respond to, so it’s easy to be comfortable with him. His aesthetic and energy is really sexy and hot.” Simon adds that he shed his initial shyness along with his booty shorts: “Here I am, totally comfortable around all of this gear and lighting, while also totally out of my element, exposed and objectified — there is this big tall guy with a goofy smile holding a camera and directing me in all sorts of ways. In the end it was really cool.”

Submission opens Mon, May 14 and runs until Sun, May 27 at Buddies in Bad Times Theatre, 12 Alexander St. draskobogdanovic.ca