Friend of Towleroad Lewis Payton has allowed me to share a few images with you from the upcoming issue of DNA (now one of Towleroad’s sponsors!). Lewis Payton fans should be happy, as the issue features a bumper crop of eye candy all shot by Mr. P. I asked Lewis for a few words about the images, and the guys in them.
Kevin Burns: “This shoot features a new face, Kevin Burns. Kevin is only 21, but he’s already experienced more than many people ever will. Stationed in Iraq for two years with the US military, Kevin earned the Bronze Star for bravery when his quick thinking saved an entire village from terrorist attack. His stories of Iraq were shocking, moving and very sobering. It breaks my heart to think of so many of our best and brightest youth being maimed and killed fighting a war with such dubious justification.
Kevin is firmly against the war and feels a lot of anger towards the Bush administration. He lost many friends in the two years he was in Iraq and carries countless non visible scars that will never heal. It was surreal to be creating a superficial fashion story with someone who has so recently witnessed and experienced such horror and devastation. Don’t get me wrong, I love my work and I feel very honored to be able to showcase beauty in the world, but I felt very humbled by this shoot. When the war get a human face like Kevin’s, it really brings it home.”
Sean Harley: “Sean was my first ever magazine cover model (DNA #56) and we’ve stayed in touch ever since. He’s a great guy, very humble, totally genuine and a real pleasure to be around. While he’s currently based in California, his heart is definitely back in Nebraska – this is one guy who loves the country life. When we did our first shoot, Sean was toying with the idea of competitive bodybuilding and he was huge, even after leaning down for the shoot. In the two years since, he stopped bodybuilding in order to pursue modeling and acting. When we did this second shoot, Sean had lost almost 40 pounds of muscle – quite the transformation! This is a really clean and fresh shoot and it’s one of my favorite DNA covers.”
Rusty Joiner: “Pretty much everyone has heard of Rusty Joiner. He’s graced the covers of countless fitness magazines and developed a massive following over the ten years he’s been modeling. Rusty was DNA’s December cover star and he was such a hit, they’ve brought him back for a second time. Rusty is a very sweet guy who brings professionalism and a tirelessly good nature to everything he does.”
