Hello everyone
My name is Manuela Seiler and I have been living with alopecia areata since I was three years old. As a child, I was relatively easy-going with the disease and didn't hide it. However, this changed when I started my apprenticeship in a pharmacy. The constant stares and worried questions from my customers made me start wearing a wig. I have been doing well with it for about 15 years, but I am increasingly noticing that I no longer feel comfortable and am hiding behind a facade. So I started wearing hats in my free time.
After almost 30 years, I have finally come to terms with the illness . I can't change it and I don't want to let it stop me from enjoying my life to the fullest. This acceptance gives me a whole new feeling of freedom. However, I keep experiencing that a bald head is often still a taboo subject for women or is often associated with cancer.
This is how the idea for the photo project "finding beauty beyond baldness " was born. We want to encourage women affected by baldness and show that beauty is not dependent on hair. Our goal is to strengthen the self-confidence of the women affected and at the same time raise awareness of the disease alopecia.
The creative part of the project is taken over by photographer Isabella Joss, www.isabelladoss.com
We grew up in the same village and found each other again through this project. Through her experience in portrait photography, she knows how to highlight a person's uniqueness and strength. In her free projects, she devotes herself to topics such as body and skin acceptance, mental health, people and nature.
We are delighted to be showing the project to a wider audience for the first time at the House of Photography in Olten . The exhibition will take place from August 23 to September 29, 2024 and will show selected works by 50 photographers. We will then be guests at the Kultur im Stöckli in Langenthal on October 3 and 4, 2024 with a solo exhibition and from November 2 to 10, 2024 we will end the year with another solo exhibition at the Galerie Kunst und Buch of the Siedlungsgenossenschaft Sunnige Hof in Zurich-Schwamedingen .
Would you like to be part of this project? Please contact us at m.seiler@asm-web.ch or mail@isabellajoss.com
