I felt an immediate affinity for Daigo (Canto for "big brother") because it fits right into Tongzhi Tsai (Canto for "little gay boy") - Mr Gay HK's campaign against homophobic bullying in schools.
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| Mr Gay Hong Kong 2011 Jimmy Wong on "The White Dragon," MGHK's vessel |
Daigo's Legalize Gay tee is destined to be iconic. The message is short, succinct, powerful. I love it, so much so that I had the finalists of Mr Gay HK 2011 march out in these tees to introduce themselves at the MGHK 2011 Grand Finale.
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| Edmund, Jimmy, Bridge and Ricky Photo courtesy of LifestyleAsia.com |
Yesterday I had lunch at Koh Thai's beautiful Wan Chai terrace with Daigo's creator (who has since become a friend of mine), Yos Yunos. Yos is originally from Malaysia, has lived in the United Kingdom, and now resides in Hong Kong with Justin, his boyfriend of 11 years.
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"I was hired to design t-shirts by a billionaire's son," Yos relates, "but eventually, I had to do everything by myself. Graphic design, website, sourcing, manufacturing... The company has since collapsed from lack of follow through from the owners," Yos recalls with a slight smile.
Typical, I thought. Many of these trust-fund-babies do engage in business just for the sake of, without really bothering to learn its ins and outs. The real nitty-gritty is left to the professionals on the payroll.
"I decided then I could do it for myself," Yos continues. "I asked helped from some of my friends, Justin takes care of the financial side. I'm really lucky- he works in finance."
How, I ask Yos, would you describe Daigo in a word?
"Sexy," he replies decisively. "It's daring, with the deep deckline. But the lines are elegant, as well. Daigo is for guys with fit bodies."
So for Jimmy Wong's first photo shoot as Mr Gay Hong Kong 2011, I had him and Francois Nel, Mr Gay World 2011 (South Africa), kitted out in Daigo's threads.
Ace photographer Frankie To did a tremendous job of capturing my winners as "friendly, accessible, healthy" young guys - that's how I wanted them to be.
I think we succeeded.
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| Mr Gay World 2011 Francois Nel (South Africa) in a pictorial with ace photographer Frankie To |
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| MGW 2011 Francois Nel & MGHK 2011 Jimmy Wong |
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| Francois Nel & Jimmy Wong in Daigoby Frankie To |
With Affection,
James
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