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Unapologetic, raw, humorous but most of all kinky, John Alexander Scott Coutts, or as he is widely known "John Willie" never held back from allowing his personality shine through his work regardless that being Photography, Illustration, editing all the way to publishing a fetish magazine entitled "Bizarre".
His work took place from the early the 20's through to the early 60's and although due to its controversial for the time content, Bizarre was published strictly underground has today come to be considered one of the first and most influential fetish magazines upon which many aspects of modern pop culture are built on. He and his work is widely referenced throughout art and fashion which comes as no surprise given the unbreakable bond sex and fashion have accumulated.
In the ample amount of Willie's work what seems to have caught the public eye most are his illustrations with a profound admiration towards "Sweet Gwendoline" which he drew in a clear, anatomically correct manner. Issues of "Bizarre" often overlapped into the realms of things like sadomasochism, BDSM, gender bending as well as body modifications (i.e. Extreme corseting synching the waist to an unnatural 16-20 inches)
When publishing borderline pornographic content which strays as far away from "vanilla" imaginable, some misinterpretation and controversy are inevitable. Understandably so Willie kept caution when portraying gender-bending and male-to-female as well as female-male transvestitism as heteronormative thus
breaking the idea which was that his work was entirely linked back to homosexuality and subverting gender norms, almost ignoring the sexuality whilst keeping it irrevocably sexual. His work celebrated sex and femininity and women altogether as he was credited with "transgressing against the traditional understanding of the male gaze, where man looks upon woman and woman acts as an object upon which to be gazed". What adds to the rightfully "Bizarre" nature of the publication is the intended audience which encapsulates anyone from men, women, non-binary and anything in between regardless of sexuality whilst having women depicted tied up, gagged and restrained by other women further annihilates the idea that the magazine was superficially published for men but rather as a celebration of sex and all things Bizarre!