There are times when people make decisions, and it isn’t always popular among the masses. At the same time, however, when people make those decisions, they’re going to be those who praise them for their courage.
Over the years, a decision that was made by many women is to remove their body hair. It has taken place for as long as any of us can remember, and removing armpit hair, leg care, and other hair on the body just seems like the right thing to do.
If you look back before all of the gadgets were available to make the removal of hair possible, then you see that women would often go to great lengths in order to have the hair removed. Even primitive tools were known to be used, including sharpened stones to scrape the hair from the body.
Nobody is really sure why this takes place, but it is something that is being contested in today’s society by some women. Rather than embracing what has taken place for many years, they are now working to make a change.
There are some who feel that armpit hair is to be avoided by women and some even find it to be non-hygienic or repulsive. A London-based photographer, Ben Hopper, said this when he said: “The armpit hair is considered to be very disgusting, non-hygienic, repulsive, grotesque, very masculine.”
He used his work to present women in an unfiltered way, which included having hairy armpits. He said: “And I was also interested to explore the concept of how we perceive beauty in popular culture. [When] you look at fashion and film industries, you have a very, very specific kind of beauty standards for women.”
Hopper began to create his project back in 2017, which featured intimate quotes from models and actresses. Participants in the project kept themselves natural and were willing to share it with the world.
In speaking about this, Hopper said: “The whole point [of the series] is contrast between fashionable female beauty and the raw unconventional look of female armpit hair. I expect [the photos] will surprise a lot of people and I guess, in a way, that is one of my intentions.”
Many of the models also felt that it was a very empowering thing. Here are a few of the quotes from those models:
“I felt so relieved and free when I let it grow out. It felt like being able to breathe. It was incredibly comfortable too. I felt a confidence and boldness returning, like I was replenishing some kind of primal power.”
Another said: “You feel stronger for not giving [in] to the way you’ve been told to be. I really enjoyed people recoiling in disgust, it was funny.”
Yet another said: “It made me feel natural and vulnerable at first, and eventually empowered. I’ve grown accustomed to my armpit hair, and it makes me feel beautiful. If I removed it now, I’d feel a little bare.”
Along with being somewhat of a fashion statement, there was also a political statement involved with it. It was more about how women with armpit hair should not be a political statement, it should be a natural thing.
Although Hopper was deeply involved in this project, he does admit that he does not want women to start growing armpit hair. He said: “I just think that it’s a possibility, and people shouldn’t dismiss it. I’d like people to just question [beauty standards], the whole thing.”