Just in time
for Father’s Day a new photobook celebrating gay fathers and fatherhood titled
simply “Dads” will be released later this month. The book is the brain child of
Belgian portrait photographer and father Bart Heynen who
spent five years chronicling images of fathers in different states across the
country, including California, Alabama, Utah, and New York. Heynen now lives in
Brooklyn with his partner of 25 years, Rob Heyvaert, and their 10 year-old
twins.
Heynen spoke
to CNN about the inspiration for the photobook saying:
“I felt a
little bit lonely as a gay dad — although there are two of us — but lonely in
the sense that all the other families I knew were straight parents. I also
thought it was important for (my kids) to see other families with gay dads.”
Heynen spoke
to CNN about the inspiration for the photobook saying:
“I felt a
little bit lonely as a gay dad — although there are two of us — but lonely in
the sense that all the other families I knew were straight parents. I also
thought it was important for (my kids) to see other families with gay dads.”
Heynen would like the book to
also “dispel some of the hurtful stereotypes that still linger around gay
fatherhood,” by letting the reader get to know the dads and the families
photographed like DaRel and Charles Barksdale. The couple were approached by a
woman in an airport berating them and shouting, “what do you guys know about
taking caring of babies?” Charles clapped back:
I’ve worked with children my
whole life. I know a lot about taking care of babies. I think that this (book)
is going to hopefully help change the image of fathering.”
Heynan hopes
the book shows the:
“full spectrum
of fatherhood in the US: married couples, single fathers and widowers; families
in the cities and the suburbs; men of different races, ethnicities and
religion; and family units that include close relationships to surrogates.”
Dads will be published by Powerhouse Books and available June 29.
SOURCE: INSTINCT MAG
Bet the photobook is super cute, too! 🙂
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