"Did your boyfriend beat you?" "Did you wash the rest of the paint off your face?" "You have your lipstick all over." These are just some of the comments received by the subjects of Copenhagen-based professional photographer Linda Hansen's recent photo series, titled Nevus Flammeus. Also known as port-wine stain, nevus flammeus is a congenital vascular malformation that causes birthmarks ranging in color from light rose to dark red. Staring at somebody with this condition would be considered rude if you saw them out on the street, but Hansen's portrait photography encourages you to stare in order to force the viewer to see the facial features and the person behind the birthmark.
"I want to make a confrontation," Hansen told Feature Shoot. "How long do you have to look? When do you start to see the other details in the photo? The nose or that the clothes are sitting a little wrong. All the small details are really important. When you have looked enough at these beautiful people, the mark doesn't become interesting anymore. I compare it to having a tattoo: It's curious, or a special mark with history. It's unconventional beauty. How come when you have a mark with nature, this is not OK?"
Scroll down to see the beautiful photos for yourself and tell us what you think in the comments!
More info: Linda Hansen (h/t: Feature Shoot)
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so adorable sad though because kids can be really cruel about that kinda stuff
I'm sad that this post chooses to call these folk "brave". I have a large port wine stain and don't feel brave having my photo taken, wearing tshirts that show it off, or really doing anything to cover it up. People come in all shapes, sizes, look different, and have different characteristics. Lets get to a point where one doesn't have to be brave to be themselves.
This is a horrible burden for someone to have to shoulder. Fortunately, there are now ways to remove them, mostly through the use of laser application.
Yes. The first thing I noticed is, all of them look uncomfortable and rather sad.
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Being born with a birthmark, and bullying as a child for that reason, I now notice that it makes others more uncomfortable than it makes me. People tell me (as if I didn't know) that I can remove it with laser surgery, but what they don't know is that I feel extremely offended by that advice. It's my face we're talking about. I would never suggest anyone remove their nose, because it's too small, or too big. We have to feel comfortable with who we are.
This is a horrible burden for someone to have to shoulder. Fortunately, there are now ways to remove them, mostly through the use of laser application.
Yes. The first thing I noticed is, all of them look uncomfortable and rather sad.
Load More Replies... Being born with a birthmark, and bullying as a child for that reason, I now notice that it makes others more uncomfortable than it makes me. People tell me (as if I didn't know) that I can remove it with laser surgery, but what they don't know is that I feel extremely offended by that advice. It's my face we're talking about. I would never suggest anyone remove their nose, because it's too small, or too big. We have to feel comfortable with who we are.
