Adam Bouska (born October 31, 1983, in

Decatur, Illinois Decatur ( ) is the largest city in Macon County, Illinois, United States, and its county seat. The city was founded in 1829 and is situated along the Sangamon River and Lake Decatur in Central Illinois. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ...

) is an American

fashion Fashion is a term used interchangeably to describe the creation of clothing, footwear, Fashion accessory, accessories, cosmetics, and jewellery of different cultural aesthetics and their mix and match into Clothing, outfits that depict distinct ...

photographer who runs a photography studio based out of

West Hollywood, California West Hollywood is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Incorporated in 1984, it is home to the Sunset Strip. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. Census, its population was 35,757. History Most historical writing ...

. Known for pictures of male models in particular, he is considered a rising 'superstar photographer' in the

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late ...

community. Bouska is most recognized for co-creation of the internationally recognized

NOH8 Campaign The NOH8 Campaign (NOH8 meaning "No Hate") is a charitable organization whose mission is to promote LGBTQ marriage, gender and human equality through education, advocacy, social media, and visual protest. The campaign was created as photographic ...

. Bouska has worked with familiar faces such as

Miley Cyrus Miley Ray Cyrus ( , born Destiny Hope Cyrus, November 23, 1992) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and director. Regarded as a contemporary pop icon, Cyrus has been recognized for her evolving artistry and image reinventions. She is ...

Ricky Martin Enrique Martin Morales (born December 24, 1971), known professionally as Ricky Martin, is a Puerto Rican singer, songwriter and actor. He is known for his musical versatility, with his Ricky Martin albums discography, discography incorporati ...

Liza Minnelli Liza May Minnelli ( ; born March 12, 1946) is an American actress, singer, and dancer. Known for her commanding stage presence and powerful alto singing voice, Minnelli has received numerous accolades including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, ...

Barry Manilow Barry Manilow ( ; born Barry Alan Pincus on June 17, 1943) is an American singer, songwriter and record producer with a career that spans over sixty years. His hit recordings include "Could It Be Magic", "Looks Like We Made It", "Brandy (Scott ...

George Takei George Takei ( ; born April20, 1937), born , is an American actor, author and activist known for his role as Hikaru Sulu, helmsman of the USS ''Enterprise'' in the ''Star Trek'' franchise. Takei was born to Japanese-American parents, with w ...

Pauley Perrette Pauley Perrette (born March 27, 1969) is an American retired actress and singer. She played Abby Sciuto in the television series ''NCIS (TV series), NCIS'' from 2003 to 2018. Early life Perrette was born in New Orleans, New Orleans, Louisiana, ...

, and

Lisa Ling Lisa J. Ling (born August 30, 1973) is an American journalist and television personality. She is a news contributor for CBS News. Previously, she was the host for ''This Is Life with Lisa Ling '' on CNN, a reporter on Channel One News, a co-host ...

. Most recently, Bouska helped create book covers for

Jane Lynch Jane Marie Lynch (born July 14, 1960) is an American actress, comedian, and singer. Known for playing starring and recurring roles in comedic television, her accolades include one Golden Globe, five Primetime Emmys and two Screen Actors Gui ...

Jenny McCarthy Jennifer Ann McCarthy-Wahlberg (' McCarthy; born November 1, 1972) is an American actress, model, television personality, and anti-vaccine activist. She began her career in 1993 as a nude model for ''Playboy'' magazine and was later named thei ...

Jenni Pulos ''Flipping Out'' is an American reality television series that debuted on Bravo on July 31, 2007, and ended on November 20, 2018. The show is centered on designer Jeff Lewis in Los Angeles, California, his executive assistant Jenni Pulos, his ...

and

Meghan McCain Meghan Marguerite McCain (born October 23, 1984) is an American television personality, columnist, and author. She has worked for ABC News (United States), ABC News, Fox News, and MSNBC. She is the daughter of politician John McCain and diplomat ...

. No stranger to activism, Bouska's photography has aided a variety of charitable causes including a fund-raising calendar for

AIDS Project Los Angeles APLA Health is a non-profit organization based in California, United States, focused on building healthcare capacity and promoting wellbeing for LGBT people and those living with HIV. It was founded as AIDS Project Los Angeles in 1983, and is ...

in 2008, a national ad campaign with

Nia Vardalos Antonia Eugenia "Nia" Vardalos (born September 24, 1962) is a Canadian actress and screenwriter. She starred in and wrote the romantic comedy film ''My Big Fat Greek Wedding'' (2002), which garnered her nominations for the Academy Award for Best O ...

for HelpUsAdopt.org in 2011, an edgy calendar (6 packs / 9 lives) featuring men and their cats to promote adoptions for FoundAnimals.org in 2012, and 'Lights Out', a marriage equality ad campaign for ECOYA in 2013. In addition to his published work, Bouska has made appearances on TV shows including:

Running Russell Simmons ''Running Russell Simmons'' is an American reality television series on Oxygen that premiered on November 2, 2010. The series chronicles the lives of Russell Simmons and his assistants as they manage his business deals, family life and party pla ...

, Giuliana & Bill,

Keeping up with the Kardashians ''Keeping Up with the Kardashians'' (often abbreviated ''KUWTK'') is an American reality television series which focused on the personal and professional lives of the Kardashian family, Kardashian–Jenner Stepfamily, blended family. It aired ...

The Real Housewives of Orange County ''The Real Housewives of Orange County'', abbreviated ''RHOC'', is an American reality television series that premiered on Bravo (American TV network), Bravo on March 21, 2006. It has aired eighteen seasons and focuses on the personal and prof ...

The Millionaire Matchmaker ''The Millionaire Matchmaker'' is an American reality television series on Bravo that premiered on January 22, 2008, and is hosted by Patti Stanger. ''The Millionaire Matchmaker'' follows Patti Stanger, owner of the Beverly Hills-based "Milliona ...

, Million Dollar Listing,

The World According to Paris ''The World According to Paris'' is an American reality television series focusing on the daily life of Paris Hilton. It aired on Oxygen from June 1, to July 20, 2011. On August 23, 2011, it was announced that Oxygen did not renew the series for a ...

Hollywood Exes ''Hollywood Exes'' is a 2012-2014 American reality television series that aired for three seasons on VH1. The series chronicles the lives of seven ex-wives of famous men. The series led to one spin-off, '' Atlanta Exes'', which ran for one seaso ...

, MelB: It's a Scary World, and

Dog the Bounty Hunter ''Dog the Bounty Hunter'' is an American reality television series which aired on A&E and chronicled Duane "Dog" Chapman's experiences as a bounty hunter. With a few exceptions, the series took place in Hawaii or Dog's home state of Colorado ...

. Bouska is openly gay. He lives in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. Bouska was recognized as the community's leading photographer at the West Hollywood awards in 2007 & 2010, selected as one of ''

The Advocate An advocate is a professional in the field of law. The Advocate, The Advocates or Advocate may also refer to: Magazines * The Advocate (magazine), ''The Advocate'' (magazine), an LGBT magazine based in the United States * ''The Harvard Advocate' ...

s '40 Under 40' in 2010, featured as one of ''

Out Out or OUT may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films *Out (1957 film), ''Out'' (1957 film), a documentary short about the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 *Out (1982 film), ''Out'' (1982 film), an American film directed by Eli Hollander *O ...

'' magazine's 'OUT100' in 2011 and a

Shorty Award The Shorty Awards (also known as "The Shortys") are awards for outstanding and innovative work in digital and social media content by brands, advertising agencies, and creators. The awards, which generally focus on short-term content, honor achiev ...

winner for Photography in 2012.

NOH8 Campaign

In November 2008, in response to the narrow approval in California of Proposition 8, which banned same-sex marriage, Bouska and his partner, Jeff Parshley, founded the

to promote the overturn of this ban. While beginning at a grassroots level, by April 2009 the campaign had seen support from such celebrities as

Leslie Jordan Leslie Allen Jordan (April 29, 1955 – October 24, 2022) was an American actor, comedian, writer, and singer. His television roles include Beverley Leslie on ''Will & Grace'' (2001–2006 and 2017–2020), several characters in the ''American ...

Shanna Moakler Shanna Lynn Moakler ( ; born March 28, 1975) is an American actress, model and beauty pageant titleholder. She was the winner of the Miss New York USA pageant in 1995 and was the first runner-up at Miss USA 1995. After winner Chelsi Smith won ...

, and

RichGirl RichGirl was an American R&B vocal girl group, consisting of four members: Audra Simmons, Christina "Brave" Williams, Lyndriette Smith (now known as Kristal, a member of June's Diary) and Amber Streeter (now known as Sevyn Streeter). The gro ...

; and became involved in the

Miss USA 2009 controversy The Miss USA 2009 controversy centered on Miss California USA 2009 Carrie Prejean's answer to a question regarding same-sex marriage. On April 19, 2009, during the ceremony of Miss USA 2009 in Las Vegas, Nevada, the five finalists were all asked a ...

. The campaign has now gained the support of other notables, including Johnny Depp, Liza Minnelli, Miley Cyrus, Annie Lennox, Kathy Griffin, Denise Richards, Jane Lynch, Mark Hoppus, Lisa Edelstein,

Rose McGowan Rósa Arianna McGowan (born September 5, 1973) is an American actress and activist. After her film debut in a brief role in the comedy ''Encino Man'' (1992), she achieved recognition for her performance in the dark comedy ''The Doom Generation' ...

Erin Cahill Erin Jessica Cahill (born January 4, 1980) is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Jen Scotts in ''Power Rangers Time Force'', Ted Mosby's sister Heather in ''How I Met Your Mother'', and Kendra Burke in '' Saving Grace''. She ...

and Steve-O.

References

External links

Official website and blog

Official photography website
*
Adam Bouska
at Model Mayhem
NOH8 interview on CNN
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bouska, Adam 1983 births Living people American agnostics American photographers American gay artists American LGBTQ photographers American LGBTQ rights activists People from Decatur, Illinois LGBTQ people from Illinois Shorty Award winners 21st-century American LGBTQ people American founders

NOH8 Campaign

See also

References

External links