PAPER IS BURNING

PHOTOS: NYC Voguers Strike A High-Fashion Pose For “Paper” Magazine

Members of New York’s Kiki and Mainstream house ball scenes get a high-fashion makeover by photographer Timothy Greenfield-Sanders and stylist Timothy Reukof for Paper magazine’s October nightlife issue. In the immortal shouts of Paris Dupree, whose ball was the victim of mass arson: “MODEL! THIN! STREAMLINED! TRIM! MODEL!”

According to an accompanying photojournal from August’s House of Old Navy ball, the Kiki ball scene is “a sort of junior varsity-level, lower-key alternative” to the extravaganza eleganza balls made legendary by the seminal documentary Paris Is Burning, where “young kids who maybe didn’t have the polished skills to compete with the big boys could hone their chops.”

Paper‘s Alexis Swerdloff continues:

In addition to dozens of Mainstream houses, there are now nine major Kiki houses, with anywhere from 50 to 150 members each, with many of the Kiki kids also belonging to Mainstream houses, and using the Kiki scene as a way to gain leadership experience and, well, have a kiki.

These children are bringing it at every ball but why are y’all gagging though?  And you can gag on the rest of the photo shoot on Paper‘s website.

Photos: Timothy Greenfield-Sanders / Paper

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