December 15, 2013
Attitude Changes Everything
It's not anything new that the right amount of confidence and attitude can change the way the world sees you-and most especially the way you see yourself. One artist, Gracie Hagen, decided to photo document it. In her project, Illusions of the Body, Gracie's subjects go from sexy to awkward with just a slump of the shoulders, sticking out their shoulders, or contorting their bodies. Gracie writes on her website, that she created the project in order to address the norms of what we think our bodies should look like.
Gracie goes on further to say that she hopes that the juxtaposition of the flattering portrait with the unflattering one will help a lot of the body image issues that we as a culture have. The differences between the two portraits, which were taken in the same lighting and from the same angle, are so great that they could be mistaken for pictures of different women. Celebrate your shapes, sizes and the odd contortions your body can get itself into,' the photographer writes on her website. 'The human body is a weird and beautiful thing'
The photographer also goes on to say that she was adamant that the project include women of all different sizes, shapes, and ethnicities in order to demonstrate that there is no "normal" as well as the difference a popular pose can make no matter what you look like.
'Most of us realize that the media displays only the prettiest photos of people,' the photographer writes on her website. 'Yet we compare ourselves to those images. We never get to see those photos juxtaposed against a picture of that same person looking unflattering. That contrast would help a lot of body image issues we as a culture have.' She concludes: 'Celebrate your shapes, sizes and the odd contortions your body can get itself into. The human body is a weird and beautiful thing.'
All too often we get caught up in fitspiration photos of someone else's body and beat ourselves up at not being able to achieve that figure. You won't achieve the exact shape of someone else's body. You are your own person with your own issues and your own achievements. Work within that.
Gracie goes on further to say that she hopes that the juxtaposition of the flattering portrait with the unflattering one will help a lot of the body image issues that we as a culture have. The differences between the two portraits, which were taken in the same lighting and from the same angle, are so great that they could be mistaken for pictures of different women. Celebrate your shapes, sizes and the odd contortions your body can get itself into,' the photographer writes on her website. 'The human body is a weird and beautiful thing'
The photographer also goes on to say that she was adamant that the project include women of all different sizes, shapes, and ethnicities in order to demonstrate that there is no "normal" as well as the difference a popular pose can make no matter what you look like.
'Most of us realize that the media displays only the prettiest photos of people,' the photographer writes on her website. 'Yet we compare ourselves to those images. We never get to see those photos juxtaposed against a picture of that same person looking unflattering. That contrast would help a lot of body image issues we as a culture have.' She concludes: 'Celebrate your shapes, sizes and the odd contortions your body can get itself into. The human body is a weird and beautiful thing.'
All too often we get caught up in fitspiration photos of someone else's body and beat ourselves up at not being able to achieve that figure. You won't achieve the exact shape of someone else's body. You are your own person with your own issues and your own achievements. Work within that.