Drowning in Self-Image: Underlife

Photographer Explores the Fiction of Beauty and Alludes to the Greek Myth of Narcissus

Distorted by the reflections of the water they are submerged under, the models’ faces in Carolina Mizrahi’s photography project, Underlife, still manage to convey an obvious beauty. The portraits were taken in a white bath, with the help of tools such as a snorkel and earplug.

‘The most difficult part was to get the right image in approximately 3 shots,’ Carolina explained to us. ‘On average, each model could only go under the water around 3 to 4 times, due the uncomfortable sensation.’

In a further exploration of how we perceive ourselves, Carolina is now working on a project related to the Internet and self-identity. We asked her more about Underlife:

The Plus: What was the main inspiration for this?
Carolina Mizrahi: I was interested in the way media influences young girls’ perceptions of themselves, the way they get sucked in by the “myth of beauty”. I made an analogy of the Myth of Narcissus, my subjects are prisoners of their own reflection.

TP: Tell us a little about your creative process.
CM: I started research in theoretical books and artists related to my theme. When I had the first reasonable idea, I started to test and test and test. After each test I fixed details and developed the aesthetics of it. I worked on this project for around 6 months.

TP: Are you trying to inspire people to think or feel anything in particular about this subject?
CM: People have very different perceptions of things based on personal experiences and background. In this project, I was calling attention to beauty issues related to teenagers and media. However, if I managed to make people stop and reflect about something, I guess that is already a good step.