Consuming Beauty

The success of these images relies on convincing girls that the women featured are examples of what they could or should be. But the 'look' of these women is deliberately made to be anything but attainable. One single image of commercial beauty is the best result of a whole production line of professionals. The image is constructed by hair and make-up artists, by stylists, photographers - this is all before we consider that the contemporary model is physically peculiar – rarely are women so naturally tall and gaunt. 

But wait - there's more!  Even that model, on that day, at that angle, in that strategically lit studio, doesn't look like that! The image has been digitally altered. Previously we may have been tipped off by their total lack of pores that something was amiss, but the problem lies deeper than mere airbrushing. Often the jaw line is made sharper, the skin under the arms is cut away, the hip and waistline contoured and any visible muscle tone erased, making the already abnormally proportioned model appear even stranger. Women of colour are lightened, women of size are reduced, women of age are smoothed. These 'corrections' imply that if you don't fit the very narrow frame of what women are supposed to look like, you will be denied visibility or digitally made to conform. While the currently touted beauty ideal becomes so absurdly exaggerated that no actual person can live up to it, the forms, colours and textures of real women are being homogenised.

“The right to know if an image is based in fact or fiction extends beyond female health issues and into the arenas of politics and ethical photojournalism.”

FORCE FEED

The desire to achieve the unattainable 'beauty' of these images keeps women and girls alike in constant pursuit, fuelling purchase after purchase. Unfortunately for the contemporary female these advertisements are virtually unavoidable. Even if we choose not to buy the products these images sell, we cannot help but consume the image itself. Therefore it's only fitting that, just as commercially produced food must label it's potentially harmful and artificial ingredients - so to should advertisers and purveyors of images. Since digital doctoring is standard practice for fashion editorials, advertisements and basically any commercially produced image – we are being force fed artificial beauty more often than the real thing.

LESS IS MORE

Celebrity status has long demanded a supernatural appearance.  Not surprisingly celebrity managers make a point of stating certain digital alterations in their famous clients press contracts. Luckily not everyone wants their image subjected to extreme manipulation, Kate Winslet is not the only star to pull photos featuring a drastically reduced version of herself. Jessica Simpson even chose to grace the May cover of Marie Claire, without make up or re-touching. In a positive turn magazine editors have begun responding to demands for more natural depictions of women. A recent issue of French Elle claims a host of  celebrated beauties including Eva Herzigova, Monica Bellucci and  Sophie Marceau appear on their pages without the usual enhancements.

CHOOSE RAW

Already lawmakers such as Jo Swinson in Britain and Valerie Boyer in France are pushing for legislation that would require advertisers to print disclaimers or warnings next to digitally altered photography. The right to know if an image is based in fact or fiction extends beyond female health issues and into the arenas of politics and ethical photojournalism. The need for the media to represent the world, its people and events as accurately as possible is one we must demand. Previous schemes such the Voluntary Industry Code of Conduct on body Image (an Australian Government initiative) have not worked. It is now time that labeling of falsified imagery be made mandatory. If a globally recognised symbol could be seen whenever a digitally altered image appears, we could use our new found awareness to express a preference for 'raw' unaltered photography. This would not only promote more realistic representations of the world, but promote healthier ideas about beauty. If you support the image consumers right to know join the Facebook group 'Mandatory Labelling of Digitally Altered Images'.