Alina Gross is a freelance photographer based in Germany, originally from Ukraine. She started off as a model and later pursued a career in the arts. Her new book, The Beauty of Imperfection, raises the topics of sexuality and gender, showing that the body's imperfections are beautiful and unique in their own way.
Alina uses photography as a universal language, and she wants it to be understood and interpreted without having prior knowledge of the arts. She represents bodies in art as realistic as she has seen. In the media, they can be characterised by a distorted perception of real ideals of beauty, and she wants to change this in her work and appeal to a young and international audience.
Gross's medium is artistic photography, and she wants it to be clear and minimalistic. She often works with colours to express moods and feelings using floral elements and nature as well as body paintings, and getting close to the subject to create intimacy and closeness.
© ALINA GROSS
Many people struggle with their body image and having to keep up with society's norms, what they think is the right body type, and how we should be. We are brought up in a society where we feel we need to fit in, but this is not the case and Alina Gross's new book helps us realise this.
In an interview with Vogue Portugal, Alina describes her work as she wants to celebrate femininity and the act of being a woman, even if the censorship of social networks tries to prevent the publication of her work. During the interview, she speaks about the role the female gaze plays in photography and whether women can really be in power through the lens of photography. She explains that just like the Rubens, women were not considered the ideal of beauty. She wanted to create space in photography where women can be who they are without feeling ashamed. She wants to take back the power of image and be mindful of the influence it can have on people.
The Beauty of Imperfections was released on the 16th of August 2023 by the publishing house Snap Collective. You can order it here.
