The search for diverse female beauties

Published Mar 3, 2015

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The Atlas of Beauty is a project which aims to challenge the ideals of beauty dictated by the women’s fashion magazine industry.

Romanian photographer Mihaela Noroc travelled to 37 countries in search of diverse female beauties in their 20s to prove that beauty can only be measured by the beholder.

“I see many young people trying to be somebody else, to copy global trends, instead of being themselves, keeping their unique genes and cultural background. There is a lot of pressure to look a certain way, and my message is that an original is always better than a copy.”

She came up with the concept during a journey to Ethiopia. This country showed fascinating women keeping their traditions alive without paying attention to global trends.

“I realised that beauty is about being different, being yourself and keeping your cultural heritage.”

The women who Noroc approached reacted differently to the project; some were happy, while others were hard to convince.

“There were funny moments when I was showing them my photos and they didn’t believe they were taken by me. The fact that I’m a woman too helped a lot. In the beginning, I was really nervous and I was taking all the refusals personally.

“I want to show to the world, that we can be different and being yourself is the best best.”

The project was funded by Noroc’s savings, but money has now run out and she’s trying to find money for the initiative to continue.

“It was not a lot of money. I was always on a budget, staying with locals and using cheap transportation.”

Independent

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