Shame by Lana Kudinova

The absence of clothes renders a person vulnerable. Clothes provide a chance to cross out all imperfections of the body, to hide behind a role, image, style. It protects from the burning, piercing shame hidden deep inside: a shame for belly rolls, for thighs that are too thick, neck too short, palms too big, or feet too long. Without clothes, there is nowhere to hide, nowhere to find refuge from the self-consciousness caused by the bodily imperfections. The level of anxiety that modern women experience because of the perception of their own body is extremely high. Comparing themselves to others and to the images transmitted by the media, they remain in the constant state of striving for perfection. Yet all the attempts, tricks, and even achievements are in vain — not only do they fail to liberate women from their shame, they make it stronger. The ideal image is still as remote as ever, constantly changing and essentially unattainable. Today it is fashionable to be thin, tomorrow — to have round breasts and narrow waist. And still, you never fit in. We know how to trick the mirror: choose the best pose, suck in the stomach, stretch the neck. But the camera is not as amenable, and often it doesn’t conceal the visible. On the contrary, it reveals the “imperfections,” departing further and further from the fictitious, ideally constructed corporeality.