Youths and elderly people, the hands of a worker, hairy armpits, a posing girl – beautiful and ugly, or just beautiful or just ugly? But does ugly actually exist? Not in the images of Robin de Puy. She finds beauty in what others regard as unsightly. Unexpected and touching beauty are the common denominator running through the Love Me exhibition. And de Puy is present in every picture. As the photographer, she decides who fits into her photographic world, she is the director; and in her world everyone has a very specific, undeniable beauty.

de Puy chooses her models according to a very personal criterion: there has to be a feeling of familiarity between her and the person portrayed. She does not look for deviance, like the famous Diana Arbus. de Puy looks for the mental or physical beauty, and the vulnerability of individuals on the margins of society… the scars of life: her work begins where pain turns into beauty.

Robin de Puy (1986) grew up in the town of Oude-Tonge in southern Holland. In 2009 she completed her studies at the Photo Academy in Rotterdam, and began a successful career as a photographer. She has won, among others, the Photo Academy Award (2009) and the Dutch Portrait Award (2013). de Puy takes pictures for large national and international newspapers and magazines, such as De Volkskrant, M Le Monde, New York Magazine, and for companies such as Het Nationale Ballet.

Further information can be found at: http://theravestijngallery.com [The Ravestijn Gallery]