CASTING CALL

Can you rock a corset like no other? Love the idea of bathing in Cheez Whiz? Philth, the raunchy new magazine intriguing Philadelphians, wants you to be its next cover model. Blending arty fashion with smutty camp, the free publication can be found in more than 120 bars, retail stores and coffee shops around the city. Its third and most recent issue, which highlights select Philadelphia "boroughs," is out now; the fourth will hit shelves Oct. 15, the same day Philth is launching a "lifestyle agency" to represent models from the magazine. Philth founder/creative director Stefan Bernarsky jokingly calls the agency "Philth pimps." (He's also the brainchild of "Spread it," the mag's tag line. "It just sounded dirty," he says with a Butt-Head chortle.) Your mission: Slink into something naughty, messy up your locks and hit the runway ready to impress. Just don't try too hard. Bernarsky says the only prerequisite to modeling for his rag is "not to be a model." At Wednesday's open call, the Philth folks will snap mugshots of everyone who shows up and readers can vote online for their favorites. When making cuts, staffers will take the Web tally into consideration, but they have the ultimate say on who's in and who's out. Bernarsky, a 26-year-old Abington native, says he started the magazine "to show what it's really like here so people don't think it's so conservative and boring. And to bring a sense of humor to it." In his last year studying photography at Drexel University, Bernarsky got the chance to work for L'Oreal. Those checks allowed him to pay the bills and put out the magazine, which he runs from his home and studio — a huge warehouse in the Loft District. The 8-by-8-inch glossy pages showcase cool threads by "slipping fashion in so it looks more natural, in a better way than saying, "Buy this shit.'" Bernarsky says Philth fills a void left by Philadelphia magazine and Philadelphia STYLE. "They're leaving the city out of Philadelphia. They're concentrating on the suburbs; the people who read them are the people who leave the city every evening. [Philadelphia is] a gritty, dirty place, but it's also beautiful so we try to cover that in a nice way. The people here are great, but the city is disgusting." Speaking of disgusting, mark your calendars for Aug. 30, when Club 218 hosts a live oil-wrestling match and photo shoot for Philth's upcoming sports-and-college issue. Now that's some good, philthy fun.

Philth Magazine Model Search, Wed., Aug. 24, 9 p.m., Siam Lotus, 931 Spring Garden St., pre-register at www.philthmagazine.com. Oil Wrestling Match, Tues., Aug. 30, 10 p.m.-2 a.m., Club 218, 218 South St.