Yossi Loloi Photographs Obese Women In The Nude, Challenges Traditional Notions Of Beauty (PHOTOS)

Photographer Yossi Loloi must have taken a hint from Lucian Freud and Peter Paul Rubens when he took photos challenging the traditional image of the nude muse.

Loloi's project, entitled Full Beauty, features nude photographs of women 420 pounds and larger. With a deep respect for his subjects and a challenging eye toward both pop culture and art history, Loloi shows that the history of the female nude is a dangerously limited one. While it is a rarity to show curvy bodies in advertising, entertainment or even contemporary art, obese women are virtually never acknowledged in these realms, despite the growing number of Americans who are overweight.

By showcasing women up to 600 pounds, Loloi shows a softness and beauty to an often ignored body type. On his website Loloi writes: "I believe we own ‘freedom of taste’ and one shouldn’t be reluctant of expressing his inclination towards it. Limiting this freedom is living in a dictatorship of aesthetics."

Do you find Loloi's photographs shocking or comforting? Let us know your opinion in the comments.

h/t HuffPost UK Culture