When Shelby Swink got dumped by her fiancé just five days before her wedding, she refused to collapse in a heap. Instead, she turned her heartbreak into art – and became our hero in the process.

Shelby. Image via  Elizabeth Hoard Photography .

After her partner of three years left her, Swink decided to spend the day of her cancelled wedding creating the greatest “trash the dress” photo shoot of all time.

She surrounded herself with her friends, family and bridesmaids, headed to a park in her wedding dress and staged an epic paint fight.

It was captured by photographer Elizabeth Hoard – and it looks truly beautiful.

Take a look. Post continues after gallery:

The idea behind the shoot was to celebrate the love, happiness and positivity in her life, despite her heartbreak.

The bridal party ended the shoot with a champagne toast honouring Swink.

The dress is now on display at The Barefoot Bride in Memphis, where it was originally purchased from, and a percentage of every dress sold while it is on display will be donated to a non-profit organisation that helps to empower men and women in Africa.

Swink said the experience had been “cathartic”:

Now THAT’S how you handle heartbreak.