Beautiful Ballerinas

This is the picture that caught my eye when I was flipping through the New Yorker. This photo was part of an ad for the 2015-16 season of a ballet company. When I first saw this, it reminded me of the Bratz dolls that I used to play with when I was little, with their impossibly tiny waists and faces done up with makeup. I also felt that it was a little ironic that this was the picture I found after we had been talking about feminism for the past couple of classes. It reinforced that there are many ads in magazines that push for this unattainable skin-and-bones look. 

Now, given that this photo was used for a ballet company, where the performers have to be in top athletic condition, this is a justifiable depiction of their lithe bodies. I can also appreciate how the artist tried to capture the natural beauty that ballerinas carry within themselves. However, I felt that it was just another example of how we as women and as a society cannot escape these images of tiny waists and long legs.