MARTIN: I have re-touched other images for magazines, and those editorial publications often want you
to beautify people. I don’t think there are many images left in magazines that aren’t retouched, except for
maybe National Geographic or TIME. I think it’s important to say that I don’t retouch this series because
everything else nowadays is retouched. I think a close-up is perhaps the purest form of portraiture, be-
cause you’re at a distance that your daily interactions don’t allow. I think the lighting is very forgiving -
even so a lot of people hate seeing themselves that close-up, but I think that’s more a matter of proximity.
ANDREA: Do you get private commissions?
MARTIN: Yes, I do. Mostly from people that are not that vain, or at least not so vain that they can’t stand
looking at themselves.
ANDREA: How would you define beauty?
MARTIN: I like people that are comfortable in their own skin no matter what they look like, and are
not too concerned about what other people think. Who have an internal confidence that is not dictated
by our social stigmas or rules. Ultimately, I think the most beautiful people are those that care the least
about how they look. I think what’s appealing to me is when people don’t buy into this rat race of try-
ing to fulfill some ideals that people in the fashion industry make up.
ANDREA: This issue is about power, so I want to talk about the female body builder series. You men-
tion society’s aversion to female bodybuilders. Did you share that bias when you first began photo-
graphing these women? Did your opinion change?
MARTIN: When I first saw the female bodybuilders, I was in awe of what they looked like. How could
anyone come to the conclusion that this was appealing? Then when I learned how much it takes to
look like that, the commitment and the effort that goes into these bodies, it was even more shocking.
All the substances these women take, from steroids, to hormones, to dehydration pills. It is really one
of the unhealthiest endeavors to become a bodybuilder-man or woman. Some of them have driven
themselves to literally life threatening conditions, or have trouble even walking or thinking straight
because their bodies are so deprived of nutrients.
But I came to realize that these women are proud of their bodies, and that they’re happy to look the
way that they look. I found a lot of courage in their making all of these sacrifices for something that
most people find freakish. I ended up wanting to celebrate these women for finding something that
gives them a purpose in life and that they enjoy doing, and why not, why should everybody have to
look the same, considering that most other athletes do the same thing to achieve their goals. They take
the same pills and injections, any endurance athlete at that level. I never fully understood why these
women do it, maybe oftentimes for reasons of self- control. It is a very structured life to be an athlete,
you have to do things at certain times everyday because there is a given routine, which I think attracts
a lot of people to sports, they find comfort in that structure. Some of these women have struggled with
addiction, so I think this structure helps them feel secure in something.
ANDREA: Your photography of these women is incredible, but I personally find it to be aesthetically
unappealing, to the point where I have a visceral reaction.
MARTIN: A lot of women have said, “why is it that only men are allowed to be strong?” which is a
valid point. I think it’s a sign of emancipation. Women think, “I want to look strong. I’m born with the
same muscles as men, we all have the same muscle groups - why are men supposed to look strong and
women weak?” I think that these women don’t want to fit the mold, so I think, good for them.
ANDREA: What do these women look like with their clothes on?
MARTIN: Well, to look like they do, they go through this routine where they build up a lot of muscle.
Martin Schoeller, Debbie Bramwell.
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