Artist Statement

“I like my hair because it’s weird.”

“I don’t like my torso because people think if you’re not small and really skinny you’re not beautiful.”

“My big hands are an odd feature that I adore about myself. I use them to play piano and express my creative personality.”

What is your favorite feature? What is your least favorite feature? How do you define beautiful? Is it inward, outward, or both? My twelve year old daughter’s physical transformation into adolescence has triggered such questions. Through camera and writing sessions, I have engaged these questions translating them into a series of portraits featuring girls in my community whom I feel demonstrate confidence, centeredness, a strong awareness of self and beautiful character. Exploring the messages these young girls internalize about beauty, I have addressed two sides of body image: the things these girls like and dislike about their bodies.