A Girl #4
‘A Girl #4’, 2019, from the series 'ABD: Artificial Beauty Disorder’, Narelle Delle Baite, Australia
The Female Identity
This image forms a part of a series concerned with the promotion of beauty which is disempowering Western women. Digitally manipulated, this portrait of a girl is placed within the unsettling familiarity of the dinner setting.
The dinner plate sets the subtle barbaric tone for this image, symbolising a social setting where ideas and discussions are expressed. The setting of the dinner plate symbolises a community and consumption.
The eye is close and the colour treatment dramatised and distorted. In the 21st century women have become active participants in curating their image. The eyes closed can be viewed as a form of modern female ignorance towards the embracing of images which promote unrealistic and artifical versions of female beauty ideals. Colour is reintroduced yet distorted from the original. poses the question of natural vs artificial beauty and the question of the role women play in the acceptance of these unrealistic beauty ideals is raised.