Abstract
This paper examines the transformative potential of participatory photography in challenging conventional photography’s treatment of Fat bodies. Drawing from the Fat/Sew research project, we explore the tensions that emerge when Fat Liberation principles meet traditional photographic practices that have historically minimized, obscured, and “corrected” larger bodies. Photography typically operates through established techniques designed to make Fat bodies appear smaller for example, elevated camera angles, strategic lighting, dark clothing, and carefully orchestrated poses. These methods reflect the photographer’s power to control how bodies are perceived. Our project disrupts this paradigm by transferring creative control to participants, who selected their own locations, poses, and clothing. Through interviews and participatory photography sessions with three Fat-identifying people, we encountered an unexpected dilemma: participants often desired idealized images that paradoxically aligned with the very conventions we sought to challenge. This tension illuminates the complex relationship between authentic representation and societally normative perspective, whose aesthetic values guide image-making. Our arts-based methodology revealed how participatory photography can reimagine the photographer’s role - from one who wields power to minimize and hide, to one who collaborates in acts of self-determination. This study contributes to understanding how image-making practices can become sites of resistance, transformation, and Fat embodiment within fashion research and visual culture.
Presenters
Leila KelleherAssistant Professor of Fashion Design and Social Justice, Parsons School of Design, New York, United States Ben Barry
Dean, School of Fashion, Parsons School of Design, New York, United States Anne Zbitnew
Professor, Faculty of Media and Creative Arts, Humber College, Ontario, Canada
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
KEYWORDS
Participatory Photography, Body Representation, Fat Studies, Arts-based Research, Visual Culture
