2019 will be the year of strong women! Today comes the second part of our Powerfrauen-Serie #dubiststark! Every month, we present an admirable woman who moves, inspires and encourages us. Just like Marine, who speaks out against the beauty craze on social media. Also check out our Instagram channel for more on our power women!

Do we all have one? Visual Diet (ie visual diet) needed? According to Marine Tanguy (29), the answer is yes! The native Frenchwoman is the founder of MTArt Agency, an agency that supports artists who enrich the world. Marine was chosen last year by Forbes as one of the "30 in 30 in Europe" in the field of "Art and Culture". This makes her one of the most influential young entrepreneurs in Europe.

Together with the British photographer Rankin and the agency M & C Saatchi Marine has the exhibition Visual Diet compiled. The goal of the project is to explore how images around us affect our psyche.

Recently, researchers have the Royal Society of Public Health in the large-scale study #StatusOfMind figured out what negative effects social media? like Instagram, Facebook, Twitter or YouTube? on the health of young people (14- to 24-year-olds). The constant comparison with others, as well as the gap between body ideals and the reality damage the psyche especially of adolescents and young adults. Many of them have symptoms of depression. The comparison with artificially edited images stirs the concerned people's fears (worries, nervousness), not being "worth enough". They feel inferior.

Before the Visual DietExhibition: Marine Tanguy (right) with the artists Adelaide Damoah, Clemence Vazard and Mimi Gray from the advertising agency M & C Saatchi London (V.r.n.l.).

© MTArt Agency

To marines Visual DietExhibition has contributed a photo project to Rankin as well as the artists Adelaide Damoah, Clemence Vazard and Camila Gonzales. The Briton, who already had the Rolling Stones, Kate Moss and the Queen in front of the lens, photographed 15 teenagers and then asked them to make their own photos "Instagram-fair".

After just five minutes of editing, the teenagers made radically altered portraits: they narrowed their noses, chewed thinner faces, made their freckles disappear, enlarged their eyes and lips, and resorted to virtual make-up.

How frighteningly radical the teenagers have worked on their own photos shows the following video:

In an interview with ChroniquesDuVasteMonde.com, Marine Tanguy reveals how the project works Visual Diet came about and how it wants to make the digital world a better place.

ChroniquesDuVasteMonde.com: Marine, you're the founder of MTArt Agency and have developed the concept Visual Diet. How did you come up with this idea?

Marine Tanguy: When I MTArt Agency I gave a speech at the Royal Society of Arts, It was about visual artists getting more influence. I had just returned from Los Angeles where I ran my first art gallery. As a result, I had contact with the top agencies in Hollywood and got to know what influence they allowed their future stars.

In this speech, I cited the following comparison: Kim Kardashian has 120 million followers on Instagram? the Louvre Museum in Paris, however, only a scarce million. It seemed to me necessary to give our cultural property a stronger voice. This view became the heart of our agency: we want our artists to inspire as many people as possible with their art. For this, we show their works of art everywhere: in public, digitally, through brand campaigns and exhibitions.

Kim Kardashian's content is not only superficial, it also damages our mental health

To stick with the example: Kim Kardashian's content is not only superficial, it also damages our mental health. Our research showed that such narcissistic, sexualized and consumer-oriented content can even trigger depression? as you see them today with young people more often. In addition, this content makes them addicted, but at the same time the superficiality and unnaturalness of these images dissatisfied. The name of the project Visual Diet The message conveys that we have to take care of ourselves by posting only rich pictures, such as art.

What's the intention behind your campaign?

The goal of the campaign is to raise awareness of any visual content we consume on a daily basis. We want to show how images affect our mental health.Many of us consume on the internet? especially on Instagram and Snapchat? that which is the equivalent of fast food nutrition. It is time to put an end to this habit. I want to make sure that more people enrich themselves in visual art? and not the narcissistic content that currently dominates social media. That's how I want to improve people's mental health.

It's time to raise awareness of visual content

We also want to show that artists have a true value for us and our society and create rich content with their works. In the long term, we want to work with the Visual Diet create a kind of fair trade label: something that can be claimed if you respect these guidelines? be it as an artist or as a company.

How exactly do pictures affect our mental health?

Today, we consume pictures more than ever. These images affect us as much as our friends and people surround us: they play a big role in what or who becomes of us. When we are born, we understand our environment primarily through what we see. Visual is fundamental to us. If you grow up in a negative visual environment, it will negatively affect your mental health. The same applies to public places.

Why do not we create a picture landscape that is visually inspiring?

In the past centuries, art was seen as a therapy. The Canadian government now forwards museum visits to people who are mentally weakened. So, if we know that, why do not we create a digital landscape that is visually inspiring?

Which negative symptoms can social media channels? like Facebook, Instagram or Pinterest? cause?

Social media channels can be fantastic platforms! I met a lot of friends through Instagram and built a supportive community.

At the same time, these channels also pose a great danger. They affect us through the huge echo space they form. We see the world's top 5 influencers disseminate all similar content, creating a monotone digital landscape for all of us.

We It is those who have the power over what the digital landscape looks like

It is important to remember that we it is those who have the power; that we It is those who decide whether and how this landscape varies. We can all make this landscape more substantial for us? we just have to want it. Every follow, every like counts? and right now we follow and like people who are hurting especially the young generation.

Is not this effect also caused by advertising, which is often sexualized while pretending to be natural?

A picture says more than 1000 words, as we know. It can create amazing things in us? or uncover our deepest insecurities. Advertisements have manipulated us in this way for centuries: you think you can only be? When you buy certain things or behave in a certain way. Advertising shapes us. Everyone knows the feeling to look at some pictures and feel miserable a few minutes later. The good news is: you can nullify the feeling. The problem is not you but the content you consume.

It is time to highlight those heroes who desperately need our children

That's why I work with the advertising agency M & C Saatchi work together to the Visual Diet to launch. Advertising is changing at the moment? as the latest Nike and Gillette commercials show. The brands are slowly realizing the influence they are exerting. They have to take responsibility for who they make famous. The wonderful thing about social media channels is that anyone can influence it. Many brands have engaged our artists because they have convinced the authentic message of their works? and because they believe that they are inspiring role models. It is time to highlight those heroes who desperately need our children.

How can we stop the never-ending spread of narcissistic and sexualized photography?

For the purpose of researching a speech, I posted a photo of my behind in bikini on Instagram. This photo got 75 percent more views than my usual posts!

Now imagine a 16-year-old girl noticing that her body is given more value than her exam score. As a natural reaction, she will post more body images of herself.

My conclusion: We have to stop liking such pictures? it will change people's lives.

So should sexualized, narcissistic photos be banned on social media channels?

Of course we could ban such pictures. However, I think we should focus more on education. It would be far more effective if we give people the information they need to better understand what they are actually consuming there.The more people know about it, the more people will make the right decisions.

British photographer Rankin has taken photos of teenagers and asked them to "socialize" them (see video above). No one left his photo unedited. What is the message behind Rankin's art?

The most interesting aspect of Rankin's project is actually the following: The teenagers were shown after both photos? the natural and the overworked by them. Actually, everyone preferred the natural photo of themselves? at the same time they would post the edited. What Rankin shows with his project is how much photos are processed today and how frightening that is. Because it also shows what we perceive most: our imperfections and uncertainties that make each one of us unique.

How can one escape this addiction to always look perfect on social media channels?

I would advise everyone to follow only those accounts that will make you happy and enrich your day! Follow artists, look at beautiful nature photos? and if you follow people on Instagram & Co. destroying their value, then they will not follow.

If you could change one thing to social media? what would it be?

I would make the picture landscape more inspiring! I can not wait for it to change.

Marine Tanguy, thank you for the interview.

How social media visuals affect our mind? | Marine Tanguy | TEDxLausanne (April 2024).