The Kapital Kink posters displayed around the city did little for one woman who tore one poster down and complained to city hall. The poster is kinky — it shows a dominatrix spanking a bare ass — but it is designed to promote the Kapital Kink fest and Mr Leather Ottawa (MLO) from Nov 12 to Nov 14.
Although MLO and Kapital Kink are partnering together to put on a weekend of leather, fetish and kink, the two are separate events and all promotion is done independently.
Pat Croteau, producer of MLO, says that the only stipulation is that on promotional materials, both MLO and Kapital Kink should be mentioned as being in partnership with each other.
Croteau has not seen Kapital Kink’s poster but is aware of what photographs were used. He says he might have selected a tamer image to promote the event, but that it is a shame there has been such a negative reaction.
“The reaction to this and the reaction to Wilde’s window display, to me, underlines how sex negative our culture is,” says Croteau. “I don’t think people realize that when they make complaints like this it shows their own very sex-negative attitude.”
Duane Taylor from Kapital Kink is responsible for the posters.
“I think it is not offensive at all. It’s very innocent looking compared to what we can do, considering what type of event it is,” says Taylor.
Taylor says he was contacted by a reporter from the Ottawa Citizen after the paper received a complaint.
“This happens every year. People go around with — I say religious morals but they could be other morals — and they tear them down. They don’t give us proper respect or anything like that,” says Taylor. “It is frustrating because you spend hundreds of dollars on posters and it’s our main means of advertising.”
While Kapital Kink posters were being torn down, on the other side of town the theme was more sex positive at the launch of Mr Leather Ottawa 2011. That took place on Saturday, Oct 2, with a dinner hosted by the Ottawa Knights. Approximately 40 people attended the launch, with participants coming from Edmonton and Montreal.
“The Montreal community is trying to rebuild their leather weekend and they are coming to us for help, advice and cooperation — which is just wonderful and feels great,” says Croteau.
Croteau says the evening was a success and that they received many comments on how the leather community in Ottawa feels like a family gathering.
“And that’s what we have that works here — Toronto has big, massive parties; what Ottawa has that has always worked is that family-reunion feeling,” says Croteau.
With the launch over, next on Croteau’s to-do list is promoting the event and beginning the postering, something that will have to wait for another couple of weeks.
“We don’t bother postering until two weeks before the event,” says Croteau.
Why you can trust Xtra
