Here's an interesting idea hatched by a creative agency in London called "Project Bush." Last fall, they announced an open call for ladies in London to come to their studio to have their lady parts photographed by famous fashion photographer Alisa Connan.
"For many women, it’s about choice," said the agency, Mother London. "Waxing culture has become so mainstream that some young women don’t see it as a choice. So Project Bush is about questioning the status quo, as a means to discuss the state of feminism in 2013."
The news of Project Bush spread quickly and more women queued up than the allotted time slots availible. The results, some 93 women dropped their drawers to reveal what style of pubic hair they were sporting at the time.
One of the things that I like about this project, is that unlike anonymous online surveys, the results speak for themselves. A challenge in online polls is that there is no way to verify who is filling them out. Its just as easy for a man to submit as a woman, and the end results could be less about what women are doing to their pubes, and more about what some men who fill out anonymous online polls pretending to be women feel about a woman's pubic hair. So, proof positive, 100% of the participants in Project Bush were women.
The other advantage is that the results are visual. Sometimes it's not totally clear what is "trimmed" and what is "bush." A woman might self report that she shaves, because she keeps a tidy bikini line, while another person might consider her triangle of curls a bush. Or, a woman that crops her hair to just a stubble might consider herself "trimmed" while others might see that as more of a "shaved" look because the skin and particularly the vulva are plainly visible. At least in this portfolio, its up to the viewer to make those distinctions.
The surprising thing is the diversity. Flipping through the pages of Playboy, one would conclude that 99% of woman today are waxed completely bare. Reading the sometimes hateful and distasteful comments online about pubic hair being "gross," "disgusting" and "out of fashion since the 70s." There are a surprising abundance of natural curls. In fact, nearly 1 in 4 of the woman have a thick triangle of hair down there.
There are some surveys of questionable sample sizes and populations that would lead people to believe that all women look the same or are trying to look the same in their grooming habits. What I find so refreshing in this project is the diversity.
It's very clear that by looking at this cross-section of Londoners, each woman has her own style. Pretty much every variation from bare to bush is represented, and in more or less equal measure. And that, more than anything, is a beautiful thing.
"For many women, it’s about choice," said the agency, Mother London. "Waxing culture has become so mainstream that some young women don’t see it as a choice. So Project Bush is about questioning the status quo, as a means to discuss the state of feminism in 2013."
The news of Project Bush spread quickly and more women queued up than the allotted time slots availible. The results, some 93 women dropped their drawers to reveal what style of pubic hair they were sporting at the time.
One of the things that I like about this project, is that unlike anonymous online surveys, the results speak for themselves. A challenge in online polls is that there is no way to verify who is filling them out. Its just as easy for a man to submit as a woman, and the end results could be less about what women are doing to their pubes, and more about what some men who fill out anonymous online polls pretending to be women feel about a woman's pubic hair. So, proof positive, 100% of the participants in Project Bush were women.
The other advantage is that the results are visual. Sometimes it's not totally clear what is "trimmed" and what is "bush." A woman might self report that she shaves, because she keeps a tidy bikini line, while another person might consider her triangle of curls a bush. Or, a woman that crops her hair to just a stubble might consider herself "trimmed" while others might see that as more of a "shaved" look because the skin and particularly the vulva are plainly visible. At least in this portfolio, its up to the viewer to make those distinctions.
The surprising thing is the diversity. Flipping through the pages of Playboy, one would conclude that 99% of woman today are waxed completely bare. Reading the sometimes hateful and distasteful comments online about pubic hair being "gross," "disgusting" and "out of fashion since the 70s." There are a surprising abundance of natural curls. In fact, nearly 1 in 4 of the woman have a thick triangle of hair down there.
There are some surveys of questionable sample sizes and populations that would lead people to believe that all women look the same or are trying to look the same in their grooming habits. What I find so refreshing in this project is the diversity.
It's very clear that by looking at this cross-section of Londoners, each woman has her own style. Pretty much every variation from bare to bush is represented, and in more or less equal measure. And that, more than anything, is a beautiful thing.
0 comments:
Post a Comment