Morgan M. Ford Photography

In each of these pieces, different women act out beauty rituals ingrained in American culture with products that are sold in advertisements. The text is appropriated from advertisements from popular women’s magazines, and is difficult to read unless the viewer approaches the piece to investigate. This signifies how the linguistics of advertising, often, subconsciously attempts to persuade women to buy these products. The repetition of phrases throughout each image alludes to the repetitive nature of the rituals many women partake in on a daily basis. It is intended that the viewer will experience a sense of familiarity among the images of women practicing beauty rituals through the use of the products depicted and the advertising text that is repeated. This body of work consists of black and white, photographic images with appropriated text carved into wax that is painted onto the surface.

Images of women stare out blankly with their flawlessly smooth, make-up caked, digitally enhanced skin and their perfect bodies sculpted by personal trainers and gourmet chefs. Images of idealized women that are ultimately used to sell a product, place pressure on many women and often times destroys their self-image. The images from magazines not only serve to sell a product, but manipulate the minds of women into trying to achieve unattainable standards. This, in my opinion, is the reason for the increase in eating disorders, plastic surgery, and the general hate some women seem to have for themselves, and that which I have personally experienced. The central figure in each appears to be mentally bombarded with images from magazines.