EXPOSURE The topic of beauty is overwhelming and ever growing, with more images deemed as controversial. It’s becoming less clear what is the honest message behind a beauty image . As a group, we struggled to define what the notion of beauty meant to us. We found it easier to think about what we’d rather change within the beauty industry, quickly agreeing on the subject of imperfections. Our aim was to produce a set of images we would call ‘Exposure’, to subtly show imperfections without having to address them or point them out. We wanted to show that a model with an imperfection could still create a beautiful image without the scar being the focal point. Upon initial research within the topic we came across ‘The Scar Project’. Its mission is to “raise public consciousness of early-onset breast cancer” and to “ help young survivors see their scars, faces, figures and experiences through a new, honest and ultimately empowering lens.” (The Scar Project, 2012, online) It was refreshing to see an honest depiction of ‘real people’ within a beauty campaign and it really inspired us. We also looked at the Dove campaign, which claims to use real women. However, this was their criteria for potential models, “..Must have flawless skin, no tattoos or scars! Well groomed and clean...nice bodies...naturally fit, not too curvy, not too athletic. Beautiful hair and skin is a must!” (Stylist, 2012, online) This obviously is not an honest request for ‘real women’, which is something we’d address within our shoot. We were also interested in the way imperfections; scars and birth defects are exhibited within other areas, one poignant area being the film industry. We were naïve to how negatively scars were portrayed. In many television series and movies, villains and criminals are commonly shown with some sort of scarred facial feature, which creates negative perceptions of every-day people who have suffered severe scarring. To move away from the stereotypical hype of scars within beauty we wanted a raw, honest set of images. We were inspired by the work of Frida Kahlo’s self-portraits; ‘Tree of Hope’ and ‘The Broken Column’. ‘The Broken Column’ is “a ruthless testimony of the suffering that accompanied Frida for all her life” (The Art Wolf, 2012, online). We wanted our images to tell a story and allow for the viewer to have their own narrative. A scar is the literal and physical reminder that encloses the emotions and damaging feelings of an individual’s turmoil. Our key message is that a scar is something that should be embraced as a sign of strength and not hidden within society and the beauty industries ideal of conventional beauty. I think our images convey our message clearly and challenge the notion of beauty. They are naturally striking yet modest, which allow the viewer to have their own interpretation on beauty within the imperfection. When it came to the construction of our final three images we wanted them to be minimalistic yet eye catching. Our model in each image is posing in a strong, angular shape, which portrays the inner strength and outer strength of the model, similarly to Frida Kahlo’s ‘Tree of Hope’. The use of negative space helps the bold silhouette come out of the background. We wanted a plain white backdrop so all the emphasis was in the drama of the pose and shadowing. The lighting is strong yet not overpowering. The main light is coming in from the right side to enhance the shadow on the rest of the body however keeping the over-all image soft. “Beauty is the grace point between what hurts and what heals, between the shadow of tragedy and the light of joy.” (Tiny Buddha, 2012, online) We wanted the scar to be off centre, so using the rule of thirds we avoided having a spotlight effect on the leg as we didn’t want to isolate it and make it the main subject.
All of our images have been cropped which adds a certain mystery and sharpness to them. The composition within the frame was key for us. We purposely wanted to avoid the model having eye contact with the camera as we wanted the viewer to create their own story without subconsciously grasping any emotion from the model, through her facial expression. The model is wearing a black leotard, high heels with a black-cropped jacket and feathered necklace; we desired an aspect of high fashion and movement within our set of photos to further emphasise that a scar or imperfection doesn’t get in the way of a conventional beauty shot. However we didn’t want to specifically focus on the high fashion element, as we wanted the shoot to appeal to a wider audience. During post-production, as a group we decided against any airbrushing as we felt it would strongly contradict our message and simply didn’t think it was necessary. The brightness and contrast were slightly altered to perfect the atmosphere we wanted and to slightly enhance the drama of our images. We decided early on that we wanted the final set of images to be in black and white. It forms a delicate, smooth finish, enhances the texture and helps it come to life. “Take a photo of someone in black and white, and you take a picture of their soul. Take a photo in colour, and you take a picture of their clothes.” (Good Reads, 2011, online) Airbrushing is a huge part of the fashion industry and is just one element we as young fashion communicators and promoters aim to address. In recent years the world of fashion has taken small steps towards diversity, slowly making a difference. During this year’s fashion week in New York, it was reportedly “more racially diverse than it’s been in years” with “models of colour reaching 20%”. (Meets Obsession, 2012, online). However, the industry’s transition to broader acceptance seems to be lagging behind society’s. As the next generation within the industry, our role will be to normalise diversity and encourage acceptance without drawing attention to it. There should be no need for recognition when Vogue chose an African American model for their front cover or when beauty campaigns chose to celebrate ‘real’ women, this should be the norm within society.
Bibliography Books Zemach.M.E. 1997. Real Beauty. Pennsylvania State Press. Black.P. 2004. The Beauty Industry. Routledge
Websites Fernandez.G. 2011. Frida Kahlo. Available at: http://www.theartwolf.com/self-portraits/kahlo-selfportrait.htm. Accessed on: 20/11/12 Jay.D.2011. The Scar Project. Available at: http://www.thescarproject.org/. Accessed on:20/11/12 Deschene.L.2012. Finding Beauty in Our Scars. Available at: http://tinybuddha.com/blog/findingbeauty-in-your-scars/. Accessed on: 21/11/12 Gold.G.2010. Doves Craigslist Ad Mistake: Available at: http://main.stylelist.com/2010/06/29/dovereal-women-craigslist-ad-a-mistake-not-approved-says/. Accessed on: 22/11/12 Grant.T.2012. Good Reads. Available at: http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/278884-when-you-photograph-people-in-color-you-photograph-their-clothes. Accessed on: 22/11/12 Marloff.S.201. Has Diversity in the Fashion Industry Changed in the Last Decade. Available at: http:// meetsobsession.com/2012/beauty/has-diversity-in-the-fashion-industry-improved-in-the-last-decade/. Accessed on: 23/11/12
References Websites Fernandez.G. 2011. Frida Kahlo. Available at: http://www.theartwolf.com/self-portraits/kahlo-selfportrait.htm. Accessed on: 20/11/12 Jay.D.2011. The Scar Project. Available at: http://www.thescarproject.org/. Accessed on:20/11/12 Deschene.L.2012. Finding Beauty in Our Scars. Available at: http://tinybuddha.com/blog/findingbeauty-in-your-scars/. Accessed on: 21/11/12 Gold.G.2010. Doves Craigslist Ad Mistake: Available at: http://main.stylelist.com/2010/06/29/dovereal-women-craigslist-ad-a-mistake-not-approved-says/. Accessed on: 22/11/12
Grant.T.2012. Good Reads. Available at: http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/278884-when-youphotograph-people-in-color-you-photograph-their-clothes. Accessed on: 22/11/12 Marloff.S.201. Has Diversity in the Fashion Industry Changed in the Last Decade. Available at: http://meetsobsession.com/2012/beauty/has-diversity-in-the-fashion-industry-improved-in-thelast-decade/. Accessed on: 23/11/12
Images Duncan.R. 2011. The Scar Project. The inspiration Room (online) Available via: http://theinspirationroom.com/daily/2011/the-scar-project/ Lenin.I.2012. Frida Kahlo. Lenin Imports (onlne) Available via: http://www.leninimports.com/frida_kahlo_gallery_4.html
EXPOSURE