Beauty is fleeting. Or so the arbiters of popular culture would lead us to believe. But one New York-based photographer and actress is turning conventional marketing wisdom on its head.
After witnessing firsthand the ageism and stereotypes so rampant in the fashion world, Sasha Frolova decided to shine a spotlight on one of the most beautiful women she knows: her grandmother. Indeed, in an effort to break down age barriers, Frolova called on makeup artist Carson Stern and colorist Jacqueline Harriet to help make her grandmother, Anne Borchardt, look as though she just stepped off the most recent runways of Altuzarra, Hood By Air, Marc Jacobs, Jeremy Scott, 3.1 Phillip Lim and Rodarte.
The result? A gorgeous photo series that proves there's no expiration date on beauty.
According to Frolova, there are many reasons she wanted to take on this project.
"On a very fundamental level, I wanted to make people think and feel," she told The Huffington Post. "On a deeper level, I also wanted to address an issue I have grappled with personally for many years."
"At the risk of sounding somewhat melodramatic, I think it's safe to say that a lot of girls, myself included, that feel as though their very existence is in some way incorrect; possibly that they don't deserve to take up the space they do or that they have to work to prove to themselves and others that they do. Though this thread may not be as instantly recognizable as, for instance, the way the series raises questions of youth in fashion, I hope that it can be contemplated through the somewhat uncanniness of the images. In contrast there is thought and, ultimately, I value the idea that viewers can apply and interpret the images as they feel relevant to their own experience and can only hope that the images are identifiable."
When asked her grandmother's age, Frolova replied, "my grandmother has always been very closeted about her actual age so that's actually the one piece of information that I can't honestly tell you."
Frolova's photo essay comes amid a slight shift in the fashion industry that's resulted in more older women -- Helen Mirren, 69, Joan Didion, 80, and Twiggy, 65, just to name a few -- being featured in ad campaigns.
It's safe to say that older women are enjoying a moment in the fashion industry. And we couldn't be more pleased.
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