Yes, Master (entry 37): Fetish Untied at IML 2011

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The International Mr. Leather festival is a slightly misleading name for what this annual Chicago event has evolved into. Yes, sure, there are leathermen in their cowskins coming into view from every angle but now IML is more of a massive palate of individual kinks, fetishes, and fascinations put on display for everyone to see. As one of my slaves and I realized, as the years go on, the costumes and toys that we encounter increasingly offer a wider visual range than one may expect; the internal, highly-individual sexual worlds of men and women externalized.

On the day that I was there (Friday), I saw only a few women. Usually I see more, and I'm certain that plenty of kinky ladies visited IML on the days that followed, but this lack of feminine presence emphasized that the festival is truly, at its core, a sort of perverted dreamworld for queer men of every leaning. If you're a homosexual or bisexual male and if you like sex and have fetishes (which all of us do), then IML is for you. Leather or no leather.

Yes, you will see the classic leatherman in head-to-toe skins: the hat, the boots, the chaps, and the harness. There will be plently of them. The IML festival was designed for that fetish archetype. But now that classic leatherman shares the floor at IML with an almost-equal amount of rubbermen, human dogs, human pigs, denim boys, and lycra enthusiasts. The Old Guard has had to let the dungeon doors crack open a bit since the fetish community continues to elvolve and change in variety and number. Rather than splintering the "leather world" and shooting kinksters off into different directions (something that I was initially concerned may happen) it seems that everything is settling comfortably under 1 tent. All those fetish interests coexist peacefully as one wide, colorful spectrum of sexual obsessions for everyone to sample a bit or, at least, be exposed to. It's becoming more rare to see any party or fetish ball that's exclusively 1 type of "meat" over the other. I think that this is a positive developement. Why exclude passion and enthusiasm just because the clothing is made of a different material from the one that you fetishize? Why not embrace wider variety?

Black "gear" or clothing will always dominate IML. But this year, more than ever before, I saw blue rubber cat suits, canary yellow harnesses, and green and red wrestling singlets popping up. I, personally, usually wear all black (fashion isn't my passion and I can count on all that darkness matching everything) but just because I'm kind of boring in that respect doesn't mean that I don't appreciate a deviation into colorful kinkwear. Sometimes I get tired of seeing all that black and I love to encounter guys who take visual chances. I respect kinksters who aren't afraid to stand out from the crowd. This year was good for that since there were guys in kilts, poodle outfits, steampunk regalia, pure white Navy uniforms, and even racoon tails.

More than anything, I noticed that IML and what we define as "kink" is clearly becoming more all-inclusive. It's harder to shock people nowadays and America is becoming more sexually open. It's difficult for any of us to remain innocent in a world that features global internet. While this may subtract from the secretive, "forbidden" allure that appeals to many who appreciate paddles, shackles, and leather masks, IML is living proof that the values of varying sexualities and obsessions continue to rise.

This year, I noticed that the toys and gear continue to elvolve, progress, and remain classic when they choose to do so. Visiting the vendors' stalls it's clear that kink innovation is not slowing down in the slightest. The Willy Wonka-esque variety of impressive sex toys appeals to everyone with a libido. The possibilities and ideas are, apparently, endless which keeps the kink trade remaining fresh.

Although it was initially created for gay guys, IML is increasinly a destintation for every open-minded adult--ones who are extremely kinky and ones who are just a little bit kinky. Which means, basically, everyone. There were occassional straight couples strolling through the displays. It's only $5 to enter the market and tickets to individual parties are affordable. Being in Chicago on Memorial Day weekend and ignoring Leather Market is doing a disservice to oneself. I don't remember hearing any screams of pain at IML 2011 but I did see an endless stream of smiling faces.