In a world where Photoshop and Instagram filters are all the rage and where the media is constantly bombarding us with messages that we need to seek out perfection with seemingly flawless photos plastered on billboards and headlining on magazines, it’s refreshing to see a new movement beginning to unfold. Just recently, Paola Kudacki challenged the notion of what it means to be beautiful by photographing the always graceful Alicia Keys for Fault magazine completely makeup-free.
According to SELF.com, Keys stated that she was actually reluctant to do the shoot without a single slab of cover up on her face. “I was shocked,” she declared, “Instantly, I became a bit nervous and slightly uncomfortable. My face was totally raw. I had on a sweatshirt! As far as I was concerned, this was my quick run-to-the-shoot-so-I-can-get-ready look, not the actual photo-shoot look … And that was it. She started to shoot me.” Keys even penned an essay for Lena Dunham’s Lenny letter saying that she’s long felt the pressures to conform to traditional “beauty standards” by covering her face with a thick layer of makeup. According to Keys, that pressure only intensified as she entered the entertainment business.
That instant discomfort and built up angst from feeling forced to wear makeup turned to ease as she finished up her shoot with a naked face. “I swear it [was] the strongest, most empowered, most free, and most honestly beautiful that I have ever felt,” said Keys. Hopefully that type of positivity spreads, especially to young girls and women who should learn that their imperfections are what make them unique and ultimately beautiful.
You can see more makeup-free photos of the singer on her Instagram page.