| Editor-in-chief | Stefan Orenda |
|---|---|
| Categories | Men's |
| Frequency | Bi-Monthly |
| First issue | 2004 |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Website | www.sylkmagazine.com |
Sylk Magazine is an exclusive online men's magazine launched in June 2004. Sylk’s features a unique mix of socio-political editorial combined with pictorials of scantly clad models (Sylk Girls). Though Sylk Magazine was not the first online men's magazine in the genre it is one of the first to forsake print and embrace 100% Internet distribution.
Contents |
Sylk Magazine started in 2004 as an online publication to fulfill a niche market of people who were looking for something other than the standard men's magazine fare of tech reviews and celebrity gossip.
Sylk Magazine addresses important national and global soci-political topics such as foreign policy, environmental issues and social observations from a unique perspective, not only outlining problems but also looking at their causes and their wider implications on culture.[1]
Sylk Magazine challenges the preconceptions of what is a men's magazine by embracing politically and socially controversial topics and ignoring pop culture.
Exclusive online distribution was a decisively 'non-conformist' decision when Sylk Magazine was established. Choosing to go against the industry was not only par to Sylk Magazine's rebellious nature but also done for environmental conservation purposes choosing not to feed into the paper industry.
Sylk Magazine stepped out of the industry norm choosing not to feature popular models, celebrities and debutantes in its pictorials. Instead Sylk Girls are models new to modeling, many having never shot anything before Sylk. The purpose is to give new models exposure rather than bank on the popularity of celebrities.
Sylk Girls are chosen based not only on beauty but personality, drive and intelligence as well as the ability to represent the ideals of Sylk Magazine.
From Sylk Magazine's conception fans have noted that Sylk Girls look like real people. Glamor photography is usually identified with the use of makeup styling and heavy post processing (air brushing) of images, often to the degree of reshaping body and facial features to create the appearance of perfection. Sylk Magazine however prefers to keep the models makeup light/casual and minimize the retouching of images so that Sylk Girls have a more natural appearance.
Unlike many men's publications that are often criticized for the objectification of women Sylk Magazine focuses not only on the physical attribute of its models but on their personal attributes as well. Sylk Pictorials are without the cliché list of turn-on's and instead outlines each models personality, intelligence and accomplishments.
As well Sylk Magazine does not host contests for Sylk Girls to be voted on and pitted against one another.
Sylk Magazine has successfully survived nay-saying traditionalist and people's preconceptions that any website with sexy photos of women is pornography. A huge part of Sylk Magazine's early success is due to its marketing. Sylk's creators strive to create a publication that is unique and original that blurs the line between entertainment and information.
Everything thing in Sylk Magazine has meaning. The name "Sylk" was chosen because silk the fabric is associated with elegance and high quality but also has intimate and sexual connotations associated with it. As well silk is a luxury item that is used by people without a second thought given to its history and the hidden political influences of the silk trade. The misspelling represents the rebellious nature of the project.
Sylk Magazine originally boasted the tag line "Nothing is Sexier Than Sylk" before switching to "Sylk Magazine: Art, Politics & Sex" in 2005. Art, Politics and Sex representing the three pillars of which all society is built on. In 2007 "All Juice, No Pulp" was added to push its purely online nature as well as "A Smarter Men's Magazine" which came from a Fleshbot posting as calling Sylk Magazine "T&A for the thinking man…" [2]
Sylk Magazine has enjoyed steady growth of its fans base since 2004. The web site is constantly adding new features and expanding content. In April 2007 Sylk Magazine partnered with Turkish company, MobilARGE Ltd., for mobile distribution in Europe.[3]