Final images from my pandemic project #Forty+ Feeling grateful to have had the opportunity to get to know so many inspiring people along the way. And my favourite nugget of advise...Turning 40 is a game changer. Enjoy the ride 💫 “I worked as a model for all of my 20s and half of my 30s - my entire identity was the 'retouched' version of myself & I now find myself quite averse to having my picture taken - the raw reality can be hard to look at. As a working makeup artist in the 'beauty' industry, I personally feel that there is a general 'fed-upness' with the 'forever young & skinny' narrative. We want to see women as they are, their own best and well selves, not some cut & paste plastic version of beauty - it gives me much joy when I get to a woman over the age of 60 and beyond's makeup and they rediscover a part of themselves that they thought was lost to age - you can shine wherever you're at. Aging 'gracefully' is almost a term that signifies a noble goal in some way - it speaks so loudly to our societal standards and how seeing yourself age can feel like huge loss. At 40 I felt good about aging naturally - at 43, I may not be so averse to mechanical intervention (my bank account may dictate that!). While I can't deny that some days you feel like your childhood projected version of an old person, I love that I care less and less about other people's opinions and that I am at ease with being with me as myself. Women in their 40s are a special kind of powerful - many of us have been managing homes, work, families & loved ones and even businesses all at once for years - exhausting! Our beauty lies in our experience, our wisdom, our championing of others and our determination to keep going - if you can be content with how you look (however you approach that) while doing so - then all power to you.” Sjaniel, 43 #Forty+ #personalproject #unretouched #womensupportingwomen #equalityforall #portraitphotographer #alisaconnan