Reverse Retouching: Fattening Up Too-Thin Models

In a darkly ironic reversal of its normal role, Photoshop is now being deployed to make models look more fleshy than they actually are. In part spurred on by the impossible beauty standards that Photoshop has made commonplace, models have become so adept at self-starvation that magazine editors have to use software to make them look healthier.

Former Cosmo editor Leah Hardy recently described the “reverse-retouching” that occurred under her tenure:

“At the time, when we pored over the raw images, creating the appearance of smooth flesh over protruding ribs, softening the look of collarbones that stuck out like coat hangers, adding curves to flat bottoms and cleavage to pigeon chests, we felt we were doing the right thing… They had 22-inch waists (those were never made bigger), but they also had breasts and great skin. They had teeny tiny ankles and thin thighs, but they still had luscious hair and full cheeks.”

The more we look like ads, the closer we get to some ideal of beauty, the more off-putting we find the results. From anorexia to slumping pectoral implants, perfection has its price: Anthropomorphobia at its most sick.

Story and image via Sociological Images.