At least once a day most woman will look in the mirror, or catch a glimpse of her reflection in a shop window and wish she could change something about her body and the way she looks.
This isn’t a statistic, we don’t need data to tell us this is true. Because as women? We live it.
Be it the colour of the hair, the shape of her nose, the gap between her thighs, the pimple on her chin or the jiggly bits on her hips – there will always be something that isn’t up to her own impossibly high standards.
Why? Because our society tells her she’s not good enough every single day. It’s relentless. It’s constant. And it happens on a daily basis through all forms of media, advertising and human communication.
Enter ‘Stop the beauty madness’.
A campaign that wants to question these perceptions, and better yet wants to change them through images such as this:
It’s a campaign, that in our eyes, is pretty bloody awesome.
Founder Robin Rice, wants people to feel as though they’ve been “socked in the gut” when they see these ads. And that’s exactly what the series of 25 images do:
Speaking to Huffington Post, Rice said:
“Even if you fit the mold, you get in trouble for fitting the mold, you can’t win. My main mission is to say if women are worried about their weight and their looks to the point that they’re not actually putting themselves in the world, then we’re missing out on some really extraordinary individuals and some really important conversations we need to be having.”
Lets hope people are listening.
You might also enjoy:
The 23-year-old model who posed in her bikini with her colostomy bag.
They’re just women’s legs. But you’ve probably not seen many like this before.
Top Comments
I am all for this campaign and the new trend of media depicting the "average woman". It's very important for children and young adults to understand that the images they are exposed to on a daily basis are not realistic at all in order to prevent body dissatisfaction or worse, mental/body disorders. About-Face also wants to change this by helping girls and women understand how the media works! Check them out here: www.about-face.org
I had cripplingly low self esteem as a child and teen in the 80's I truly believed I was ugly. For me, I believe it was a combination of a prudish upbringing (nudity of any kind was 'dirty' and I NEVER saw my parents or siblings naked) and societal pressures. No-one ever told me my body was acceptable (I was a super skinny kid and very gangly and un-co), that I was pretty, that everyone is different and that's ok. My idea of prettiness and beauty came from magazines, TV and the first generation of Supermodels. And I assumed they were average. No wonder I thought I was ugly.
My kids see us naked from time to time without issue and I tell them OFTEN that everyone is different, uniqueness is what makes us and those 'beautiful people' have just as many foibles as the rest of us. I wish someone was told me that when I was young.
To those who didn't encounter body image or self esteem issues, count your blessings.