This image:
Took two days to turn into this:
The contrast is striking, highlighting once again how common is the false portray of cultural icons. It’s almost shocking to see the untouched image, so familiar have we become with the extreme doctored versions; with the fantasy sold to us by the celebrity/beauty/fashion industries.
Even if many women know that the images they see daily have been heavily photo-shopped, the message these false reflections broadcast is: this is how you should look. The very act of photo-shopping Madonna so dramatically tells us Madonna is not OK: even she needs correction.
The re-created image tells us something else, and that is that the ageing process is unacceptable. How is Madonna supposed to accept the realities of being an older woman, when those who are using her won’t?
This is what I had to say about it on Channel 7’s Morning Show this week.
[vimeo]http://vimeo.com/15559848[/vimeo]
5 Responses
The incredible thing about this is that even Madonna, who is clearly extremely dedicated to her strict exercise and eating routines and amazingly fit by anyone’s standards, actually has a slightly fuller face than is ‘allowed’ in magazine shoots. A woman who is already that thin should not need the natural contours of her face ‘enhanced’ to make her look even thinner! It is also saddening that rather than celebrating the achievement of still being prolific and so very fit at her age, evidence of her real age is simply erased. I would love to see more older women represented in the media – the current obsession with extreme youthfulness does nothing for anyone but the cosmetic industry.
very well put spilt milk
The emotion and vulnerability in her eyes in the first one is so revealing and in its way, appealing. The vacant expression in the retouched image is not.
It isn’t that I don’t get the point, her hands and forearms (not to mention face) have clearly been retouch a great deal in the second photo, but the first picture cannot be the original of the second. The perspective is wrong; the camera has clearly moved. That is something that can’t (yet, at least) be done in post production on a 2D image. I think making such an obviously false claim weakens your argument. That said, I agree that the first picture is more interesting. Is she genuinely sad, or is just brilliant at controlling her emotions?
Interesting images. I watched the interview and can I say how great it is to get this out into the popular media. One point though, isn’t it sad the female interviewer after admitting to being airbrushed then said “and I’ve insisted on it”? What’s wrong with her, she’s beautiful! Clearly there is huge pressure on women in the media to present in a certain way but this is pervading our whole society. The message is “we are not good enough”. That’s what this airbrushing industry is doing to us. It’s a “false portrayal” (MTR) of women to which no one can ever aspire to because it doesn’t exist. Even our female prime minister had to submit to it. It’s a constant reinforcement of inadequacy. We really need to start educating everyone about what’s happening here.