"Scars": Portraits of people whose bodies have changed forever

EVERY DAY PHOTOGRAPHERS AROUND THE WORLDlooking for new ways to tell stories or to capture what we previously did not notice. We choose interesting photo projects and ask their authors what they wanted to say. This week we are publishing a project by Sophie Mayen, collecting stories of people with scars, each of which is unique.

Our skin is the roadmap of our lives. Labels on it can be a grid of lines around the eyes, and senile stains, and healed scars - often long forgotten, received in fights on the school playground. Each scar tells a story; it can be a medal for winning a fight or a symbol of recovery from an accident or illness.

In the project "Scars" I wanted to show the beauty, the "flaws", the won battles and the overcoming of obstacles. He tells how people survive, live and preserve memories. It seems to me that this is a truly honest display of our biography: we do not define ourselves through scars, but at the same time they force us to move forward.

Scars are something very personal, everyone reacts differently to them, but most people have a hard time. When something that seemed perfect becomes what is considered a "monstrosity", it can be hard to adjust to the situation. This sensation breaks both the appearance of a person and his self-confidence. The scar hurts the eye, the scar remains forever. Often it takes time and courage only to start discussing such changes - not to mention showing them to the outside world.

When we build a narrative with images, the scars appear in a different light. Unplanned changes in our bodies, each of which is unique in its own way, tell stories about pain and healing. If these pictures help us to treat scars differently, to look differently at the “imperfections” and any manifestations of individuality, then I will assume that the project has reached the goal.