A photographer from Nantes who is a fan of “photo-therapy” helps her models to take a different look at their bodies and their complexes.
Love each other as a whole, a daily challenge. Yet complexes that can rot life, such as acne, stretch marks or a scar are to be cherished just as much as other traits that make us proud. In any case, this is the vision that Marie Ployart, photographer in Nantes, defends through her art, and more exactly, her practice of "photo-therapy", or "photo for therapeutic purposes". The principle: during a photoshoot, the model entrusts her image to a specialist who will suggest that she see herself from another angle, another look. The goal is to reduce the gap between what it actually looks like and how you perceive it. “I try to show them another side of themselves,” explains Marie Ployart. My models generally have a distorted vision of their body, between the photos of unsuccessful evenings, the reflection in the mirror in the morning with the neon which is not flattering … Not to mention the pseudo-models in the advertisements, who are standardized and normed ”.
Read also: 5 reasons why we should all accept our stretch marks!
Self-image, a distorted reflection
Through her work, the photographer therefore seeks to show that "the reflection of us is not necessarily what we have in mind." And by the photo, she manages "To drown the complexes in all that are the models". An element of the body that is rejected can thus be better perceived, because it is part of a whole: it becomes minimal compared to the rest and we finally perceive the beauty that emerges from the whole that constitutes a person. A form of therapy, even if Marie Ployart insists: she has not studied psychology and if a model needs real follow-up, she will encourage him to find an expert on the issue.
Where did he get the idea of getting into "photo therapy"? “When I took self-portraits of myself as a teenager, it made me feel good. Then I thought to myself that it could be of use to others. Still, this is not a profession in its own right, but just an aspect of photography ", details Marie Ployart. Warning to the modest: getting naked is not essential. "Everyone goes as far as they want, and nudity is not a 'must.' However, this photo shoot is sometimes seen as the time to let go, to accept yourself deeply, to go beyond a simple portrait ”, adds the photographer.
Models surprised by the result on glossy paper
Naked or not, throughout her collaborations, Marie Ployart notes that these models are surprised by the final result. “They weren't expecting this. A new look at them. They born, accompanied by real well-being ", reports Nantes. Julie, one of her models, wanted to exorcise a scar on her buttock, which marks her body since the Paris attacks in 2015. She wanted “Learn to make it your own”. On the photographer's website, she explains: "It was while discovering the work of artist Hélène Guggenheim that I learned of the existence of Kintsugi, a Japanese art of ceramic repair. When an object is broken, it is possible to repair it using 'gold. The object that was damaged and unusable is sublimated and becomes a unique and valuable object ”. With Marie Ployart, they chose to paint the scar in gold, as part of a benevolent shoot. “I thought it would allow me to reclaim my body and restore the attraction I could find in it,” Julie explains. Adding gold to it was to make it beautiful and precious. "
Scars, acne, post pregnancy body, sudden weight change or signs of illness, whatever, your body is a treasure.