If Our Bodies Were Made of Clay, What Would You Change?
If bodies were made of clay, plastic surgeons would be out of business. Tummy tucks, nose augmentations, and boob jobs would be a thing of the past. Want a 32 A one day and 34 DD the next? No problem. Kelsey Higley, a University of Oklahoma student who studies Art Media, put this idea to practice in a video that shows what it would be like if she could simply change her appearance on a whim.
Using stop-motion and combining about 126 digitally manipulated photos, the 22-year-old created the illusion of molding her body. "The video goes through several stages of ‘beauty’ as I receive conflicting opinions on what true beauty is. As I go back and forth, I end on my natural body, and the video starts over,” she explained on her project’s website.
The project, titled “Manipulated,” begins with Higley’s natural figure and nips and tucks with the push and pull of her hands. From straight to hourglass, small-chested to large, small eyes to Anime-like, the video attempts to explore the idea of what ideal is by demonstrating several stages and instances of what messages and societal standards perceive to be archetypal.
“I have chosen to use myself in this short to show my own inner conflict with beauty as I battle with the desire to look like someone else and the acceptance of my natural beauty,” she told Hello Giggles. Of course, as a young woman, she’s bombarded with conflicting opinions of what’s normal, but creating this video has been a “therapeutic” experience and even taught her to be more critical of the media that perpetuates unrealistic body image. “This project reminds me that these things I categorize as my flaws are what makes me human. And I love that.”
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