Would you ever think that a 13-year-old girl looked terrible because she wasn’t wearing eye-shadow and lipstick to school? Would you ever think of an 82-year-old woman as ugly because she has wrinkles and doesn’t wear foundation? Of course not, because we universally recognize natural beauty in children and seniors.
So ladies, why are we devastatingly critical of ourselves during those in between ages? Aka – the majority of our lives?
This heavy question has been peculating through my thoughts for several months now. Why do women (in general) feel like we need makeup for any sort of public occasion when a man can throw on a nice outfit and be good to go?
We all begin our journey in this world with the same fresh faced approach to life, yet somewhere along the way half of us feel the pressure to cover up (or accentuate) with makeup. What would we look like if we decided to refute that expectation and instead show up as we were?
This is the concept for Gooseberry and Gotham + Grace’s latest partnership, a new on-going photo series called As You Were. The campaign is an effort to show women a stylish, organic and confident way to embrace their face exactly as it is.
ABOUT THE SERIES: AS YOU WERE
As You Were is an on-going fine art portraiture series of real women designed to explore natural faces and beauty in a fashion forward style. Each portrait is designed with an elevated wardrobe and stunning editorial location, as any high-end photoshoot would be – the only difference is that each photo subject will not be wearing any makeup at all.
The goal of the series is to celebrate a new female narrative, one that recognizes a woman’s presence rooted in a foundation of confidence, inner strength and defiance of expectation.
It’s our hope that As You Were will inspire an acceptance and celebration of self among women from all walks of life.
MEET COURTNEY
Each As You Were photoshoot will feature a woman who feels like exploring and celebrating her natural face. Our first volunteer is Courtney whose portraits reflect a young woman who is adventurous, bold and sexy.
DISCLAIMER
{We want to be very clear: this is not a campaign against makeup or against women who genuinely love makeup. The purpose of this photo series is to challenge the societal belief that we need makeup. We’re not saying “never wear makeup.” We’re saying that we can still be professional, put together and gorgeous without anything on our natural faces, if we so choose.}
