The twisted “beauty” economy of the internet has thrown us many things to unrealistically, and sometimes dangerously, measure our bodies against. In the past few weeks, women have been posting selfies to show that their waists are smaller than a piece of A4 paper, and for a while now we’ve had the controversial “thigh gap” ideal, a desire for a defined gap between the upper thighs when standing with your feet together.
Now, a range of jewelry has appeared online, called TGap, that is designed to accentuate the coveted thigh gap with leg harnesses that suspend metal tassels and bars in the space between the wearer’s thighs. However, designer Soo Kyung Bae is trying to do more than just flog a few ill-advised batches of pro-ana bling. In fact, she’s not trying to sell any at all. When you click through to buy any of the six TGap products, priced at $175 — 195, rather than completing the checkout, a page about the brand’s story opens instead, explaining that, “TGap Jewellery is a fictional company… It is launched to catalyze a debate on unrealistic body image social media portrays.”
Soo Kyung Bae is, in fact, a design student at the National University of Singapore, and the fictional TGap brand is her way of addressing the worrying fetishization of extreme thinness in the media. “Thigh gap represents one of the first few trends regarding body ideals the media has popularized. It clearly demonstrates media’s power on influencing one’s perception of body image,” she explains to Dezeen, asking, “If we let the media keep popularizing such unrealistic body ideal[s], will this eventually become reality?”
“By using outrageous products, I hope to bring a provocative jolt that leads us to ponder and reflect upon what we are like as a society and the absurd things we value and obsess over — as well as how this creates unnecessary pressure for women and girls,” the designer continues, adding that she hopes the project, “leads to more people-centered, people-loving conclusions,” but that “it is for the audience to decide for themselves.”
Credits
Text Charlotte Gush