Trophy interrogates contemporary beauty standards as driven by consumerism, media, and marketing, unveiling a cycle in which individuals, under the influence of curated aesthetics, seek to transform their physicality to align with ideals that are often unattainable. Within this cyclical pursuit of self-perfection, individuals become both the prize—the “trophy” of a socially validated image—and the victim, entrapped by their own self-modification.The project critically engages with photography as a transformative medium, capable of distilling the three-dimensional world into a consumable two-dimensional image. This compression allows for enhanced manipulation, from filters to digital retouching, creating an aspirational “skin” that redefines the original. This photographic influence reflects the ways beauty becomes performative, constructed, and yet deceptively intimate, aligning identity with imposed values of flawlessness.
By examining the beauty industry as a force that propels mass consumption, Trophy highlights its profound societal, psychological, and environmental impacts. This consumerist drive not only feeds into personal insecurities but also promotes a culture of relentless self-surveillance, sparking a need to question: What are we willing to sacrifice in the pursuit of perfection? And who, or what, benefits from these sacrifices? Through this exploration, Trophy invites a confrontation with the ideologies shaping contemporary identity and challenges the viewer to consider the ethical dimensions of the beauty economy.