Birmingham Student's Final Project Encourages Women to @UnEditYourself
Almost every social media platform has a regular set of top images, promoted posts and curated content that just scream perfection. Taking a rightful jab at these ideals, Jade Johnson based her final project on addressing the harmful nature of such unrealistic expectations. A student at Birmingham City University, England, Johnson's project focuses specifically on Instagram posts featuring societal standards of beauty, bodies, and lifestyles.
Dubbed the "UnEdit" campaign, Johnson, in conjunction with fellow student Laura Dawkes, used the project to carry out a personal battle as well as a serve as a message for other young women who struggle against social media pressure. The campaign speaks against the unhealthy promotion of dieting, plastic surgery, and extremes for becoming an idyllic woman running rampant on Instagram (#A4waistchallenge, anyone?) .
According to Johnson, during her second year at Birmingham City University, the discrepancy between her personal life and Instagram persona began to overwhelm her. In an interview with Mim Shaikh, Johnson says "I kind of felt pressured by my own Instagram page ... like I was more of a character than a person ... I had to just put on, like, what people liked rather than who I actually was."
Putting her photography skills to good use, Johnson's online magazine features images of women with bodies wrapped in plastic, selfies after surgery, and comparative shots of body types/sizes. The overall message of this campaign knocks you over the head: don't allow others to influence how you feel about your body. In the words of Theodore Roosevelt, comparison is the thief of joy. Unfortunately, not only do people measure themselves against polished Instagram images; nowadays self-worth is directly linked to likes and follows. Just think about how often you've obsessively checked how many likes you've gotten within minutes of posting, or how many people watched your Snapchat story.
Check out Johnson's campaign look book below. Each page carries a caption pushing a more real approach to life and self. The images are compelling and the words evocative.
Dubbed the "UnEdit" campaign, Johnson, in conjunction with fellow student Laura Dawkes, used the project to carry out a personal battle as well as a serve as a message for other young women who struggle against social media pressure. The campaign speaks against the unhealthy promotion of dieting, plastic surgery, and extremes for becoming an idyllic woman running rampant on Instagram (#A4waistchallenge, anyone?) .
According to Johnson, during her second year at Birmingham City University, the discrepancy between her personal life and Instagram persona began to overwhelm her. In an interview with Mim Shaikh, Johnson says "I kind of felt pressured by my own Instagram page ... like I was more of a character than a person ... I had to just put on, like, what people liked rather than who I actually was."
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| Un-Edit |
Putting her photography skills to good use, Johnson's online magazine features images of women with bodies wrapped in plastic, selfies after surgery, and comparative shots of body types/sizes. The overall message of this campaign knocks you over the head: don't allow others to influence how you feel about your body. In the words of Theodore Roosevelt, comparison is the thief of joy. Unfortunately, not only do people measure themselves against polished Instagram images; nowadays self-worth is directly linked to likes and follows. Just think about how often you've obsessively checked how many likes you've gotten within minutes of posting, or how many people watched your Snapchat story.
Check out Johnson's campaign look book below. Each page carries a caption pushing a more real approach to life and self. The images are compelling and the words evocative.
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Birmingham Student's Final Project Encourages Women to @UnEditYourself
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Thursday, July 14, 2016
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Reviewed by Unknown
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Thursday, July 14, 2016
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