Ultraviolet Beauty (Untitled) #80

About the Photographer

Phillips, Cara

American, b. 1974 Detroit, MI

In Ultraviolet Beauties, Cara Phillips examines the cultural trend to obsessively change, correct, and prevent indiscernible beauty flaws--a mindset exacerbated by the cosmetic industry’s tendency to artificially inflate standards of perfection. As evidence to sun damage and aging, Phillips’s portraits—taken in her makeshift New York studio set up on the street--reveal the freckles and scars underneath a person’s skin that are undetectable unless viewed in UV light. While cosmetic dermatologists and medical spas use these types of photographs to sell the idea of fixing their patient’s invisible blemishes with an endless array of treatments and products, Phillips asks her subjects to investigate and reconsider their own perceptions of ideal beauty and perceived flaws.

http://cara-phillips.com/