Reclaiming the Gaze: A Manifesto on Body Image, Fast Fashion, and Resistance Through Art
A Manifesto for Radical Representation in Fashion
I started by creating abstract, flowing, flawed and realistic paintings womens bodies. This was a person confrontation with the media, the notion of the “ideal woman”, and the mirror, not just a creative exercise. I have carried on this conversation between identity and appearance through my work as a fashion innovator, examining the ways in which fast fashion interacts with the social, emotional, and mental strains that contemporary young women experience.
There is more to this manifesto than theory. It is the manifestation of my practice. It’s an exhortation to act. It is proudly worn, printed on skin, made into tapestries and resistance stiched into cloth.
1. The Critical Age: 16 to 25 is Not Just a Phase—It’s a War Zone of Identity
The process of self-formation is delicate and continuous for young women between the ages of 16-25. During these years, fashion, peer approbation, and social media all come together to influence how a woman views herself and, more significantly, how she is perceived. During this time, cultural standards of beauty are significantly internalised, claim Grabe, Ward, and Hyde (2008). This developmental fragility is exacerbated by fast fashion’s unrelenting trends and idealised models.
IS THIS THE ONLY 'GOALS'?????
IS THIS THE ONLY 'GOALS'?????
IS THIS THE ONLY 'GOALS'?????
IS THIS THE ONLY 'GOALS'?????
2. Fast Fashion = Fast Insecurity
One straightforward strategy is the foundation of the fashion industry’s success: create insecurity and then market the remedy. The industry continuously promotes limited notions of beauty through its advertising campaigns: symmetrical faces, extremely slender bodies, and perfect skin. In addition to being consistent with the Sociocultural Model (Cash & Smolak, 2011,) this supports Festinger’s Social Comparison Theory (1954), which states that people assess themselves in relation to others, particularly when under social pressure.
Instagram, TikTok and Pinterest turn into mirror-houses that only represent a portion of reality. Instead of understanding or accepting, women are instructed to compete and compare.
3. Self-Objectification Is Not Empowerment
Women are taught to see their bodies through the male gaze, even when they post a selfie, according to the Objectification Theory (Fredrickson & Roberts, 1997). This is further supported by fast fashion, which prioritises physical appearance over character, intelligence, or skill. To exist in this system is to be examined. Being seen entails being assessed and to suit an ideal is to be respected. This results in alienation rather than empowerment from oneself, from actuality, and from value.
4. Behind the Likes: The Violence of Self-Presentation
Goffman’s (1959) Theory of Self-Presentation describes how carefully constructed self-images on social media are a performance. Editing tools, filters and positions create a form of “beauty” that appeals to a viewership conditioned by the limited definition of fashion.
But dread lurks beneath these pictures, depression, eating disorders and anxiety. According to the NHS, the number of young people receiving treatment for eating disorders increased by 25% in 2022 in the UK alone, setting a record (NHS, 2022). These statistics are not unique. They represent a cultural crisis.
5. Fashion Has the Power to Heal—But Only If It Chooses To
Clothes are not neutral. It is the manifestation of identity. Identity Theory states that our dress choices convey our beliefs, goals and position in the world (Stryker & Burke, 2000). However, fashion turns into a weapon rather than an aid when bodies are eliminated from depiction, styles exclude, and sizing is inconsistent.
Casting a single plus-size model amidst a sea of thinness is not enough to be considered truly inclusive. “Even when we do plus-size shoots, the models still have to be gorgeous”, stated one creative director. It is just larger, but the standard remains the same. That isn’t advancement. Tokenism is what that is.
6. Slow the Trend, Reclaim the Gaze
The speed of fast fashion produces more than just waste. It produces mental congestion. It leads to discontent. Instead, influencing trends compels identity to follow them. However, there is an alternative.
I’m presenting a story rather than trying to promote fashion when I print my paintings on clothing. By conducting classes or making tapestries, I am fostering a sense of community. Making films allows me to give voice to bodies that are frequently silenced.
This is advocacy through clothes.
This is protesting art.
This is a reclaimed look.
7. Towards a New Standard: Diverse, Ethical, Real
Fashion should highlight our individuality rather than requiring us to fit in. Young ladies are more than just shoppers. We are rebels, intellectuals, and artists. We are entitled to representation that is grounded rather than fiction. We should wear clothes that honour ourselves instead than concealing us. We also deserve an industry that doesn't make money off of our suffering.
This is being promoted by ethical brands, body-positive entrepreneurs, and micro-influencers. But we need to ask for more. Not only in marketing, but also in narrative, sizing, casting and designing.
8. This Is My Vision
As a fashion practitioner, researcher and artist, my main project makes use of:
-Prints of my paintings of actual, abstract, unrepentant figures on clothing.
-Installations using mixed media that challenge visual language of fashion advertisements.
-A little video that depicts the unvarnished reality of body image.
-Surveys, workshops and face-to-face interactions with young women.
-This manifesto- to put things into perspective, criticise and call for change.
We are not trends. We are not “before” and “after.” We are not filtered fantasies.
We are full, complex, and evolving.
Let us reclaim fashion as our own.
Let us reclaim the gaze.
