Sunday, October 01, 2006

Disturbing, to say the least.....


and not one bit sexy. Whatever makes women think this is the way they should look? Who decided that skin stretched over bones is the paragon of feminine beauty?

I wrote a post - or maybe it was a comment to someone else - recently on the trend toward losing weight to the point of starvation. If I can find it, I'll post the link here.

A friend of mr. kenju's sent these pictures, plus a few more, in an email today. They sadden and disgust me. In my skinniest days, I never looked like this and if I had, I would have gone on an ice cream and cake diet! As it was, my mom tried to make me take "Weight-on"; a disgusting banana and cardboard flavored tablet designed to help you put pounds on quickly, and I was only 5 pounds underweight then.

How is it possible that these girls can look in the mirror or see photographs like these and think they look great?

I predict that the next big trend in modeling and fashion will be to parade the clothes down the runway on hangers. Why not? It would fill out and show off the clothing just as well as these girls do.

Your turn (with thanks and apologies to Carmi): What do you think of when you see these photos?

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23 comments:

carmilevy said...

You never need to apologize, Judy. I'm flattered that you've added a "Your turn" to your entry.

My first inclination when I view these images is to look away. It hurts to look at them, to know that these women have deliberately done this to themselves so that they can conform to a pathetically contrived ideal of beauty.

It speaks volumes about society's misguided sense of what is and is not beautiful, and it saddens me immensely.

Unknown said...

Um, that's sick. Are they picking models from Concentration Camps somewhere in the world?

And all that does is make me feel fat. *sigh*

Anonymous said...

These pics are beyond disgusting! Men don't think its sexy...women don't...who decided models should look this way? I don't get it at all! I'm really glad my girls don't feel a need to look super skinny...they love to eat...and they love to keep fit!
FIT does not = skin and bones and near death!
P.S. Very interesting with your feelings of connection to Egypt as well! Maybe thats where the love for frogs comes in? (and I'm not saying that as a joke or pun LOL) Frogs were symbols associated with Herit, Isis and Osiris.

Mamacita (The REAL one) said...

Concentration camp victims being forced to pose for the sick delight of their Nazi captors?

Adult Biafra babies begging for a bread crust?

There is no beauty in any of those pictures.

Anonymous said...

These photos are absolutely repulsive and scary to think that anyone could see beauty in anorexia.

I hope it is true that the fashion industry is rethinking its runway model ideal thin woman.

Sue said...

I so totally agree. I think that I look much better and healthier even at my chunky 169. I would never want to be that thin nor do I think that it is in any way "beautiful"

Susie said...

Repulsive and so unattractive! I think this is sending a very scary message to young women of today!

Moon said...

Bravo to Spain for being the first to put their foot down to models too thin for the runway! It's about time someone did...its been going on for yrs..when are they going to realize the average woman does not look or want to look like that. These photos are heart renching. Besides the obvious ofcourse...yes the tall lanky (not as thin as these)models wear the clothes well on the runway...but how many 6' tall thin woman do u know? Wouldn't styling clothes for the more mainstream make more sense? I don't mean to discriminate against the model types at all...I just wish that the industry itself would stop discriminating against mainstream body types in general..and stop making our young girls making themselves sick trying to emulate them.
Ok, I,m done lol

Panthergirl said...

There's a part of me that thinks (hopes) these are Photoshopped. At least somewhat. That bottom right one is GROSS!!!!

Thankfully, I think even people who tend to like their women lean would not find this attractive. That woman on the bottom looks like she's going to snap.

poopie said...

ACK! That's uglier than buttcrack.

srp said...

These are horrible. If they are real, I don't see how these women can even "walk" down the runway.

Anonymous said...

I think....major distorted body image!
They're not even pleasant to look at.....scary, actually!

Anonymous said...

Tragic. That's incredibly scary to look at. You have to wonder what goes on in their minds, and the minds of the people that hire them for modeling.

Carolyn said...

Makes me wonder if they're kidnapped and held hostage somewhere by some sicko, kept alive w/a little water and crack cocaine.

Anonymous said...

Like everyone else I just hate to see these photos, but not just for the asthetics, they represent the illusion of beauty that make young girls and women become sufferers of anorexia and bulimia.
Eating disorders are a serious illness and while "we" find these images repulsive, "they", the girls with the eating disorders, find them attractive.
This evidently occurs through some internal brain wiring fault, and yes, I am speaking with some personal experience (not understanding) of this illness.

fakies said...

Those are so scary. It looks like an ad for Feed the Children.

Everyone always tells me how "skinny" I am, which I hate that phrase. A, I am not skinny - I am petite. That happens when you're short. B, they say it as though that's some magic quality. If they saw these pics, maybe they'd recognize what skinny really is.

OldLady Of The Hills said...

It looks like the children of Biafra or some other country where children are starving...NOT so they will look good, but because there is NOTHING TO EAT!
I think this "thin" thing has really gotten out of hand...Do these women actually think that they look good? Then Anorexia is a galloping rampant disease and speading faster than the wildfires here in California! Frightening and shocking, too.

Are these wimen models????

Help!

Beverly said...

Those are hard to believe. They look horrible...how anyone can call that pretty.

Anonymous said...

Wow. Why would anyone take and promote photos of women that look like that! It's just wrong.

Pat said...

These are really horrific and re the top one I wish all women would learn to keep their knees together on film.

Shephard said...

Those are quite disturbing.
I think publishing photos like this (magazines etc) is irresponsible, but it glamorizes this body type.
I can imagine Peter Paul Rubens is on a rotissmat right about now.
~S

Anonymous said...

I agree, these look nasty...

But I also think that the magic of photoshop has contributed to their shockingness. Some of the angles on the light aren't quite right, and there are a few other things that stand out to me.

Just my opinion- where were the pics from?

tiff said...

I'm a very latecomer to this, but have to offer that yes, they've been photoshopped.

But not that much.

All anyone has to do is look at Nicole Ritchie or Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen to know that emaciated is the name of the game these days. Skin and bones and implants....how gross.