Coming Soon: The Picture of Health, an invisible illness photo project

• *NOTE: The submission period has ended. Open shoot dates will be announced later for anyone still interested.*

The Picture of Health (TPOH) is a photography and exhibition project by photographer/journalist, Leslie D. Rose. It seeks to highlight individuals living with invisible mental, physical, and chronic illnesses. Through the art of photography, TPOH will show its subjects in the manner in which they present themselves daily. Using a mixture of headshots, full body shots, and shots of the individual’s hands holding up a sign detailing their illness, the project will focus on the perceived ‘normalcy’ of people housed in diseased bodies. The project will have both a local and national component, as participants who are unable to participate in the scheduled shoots will submit high quality self portraits detailing their illnesses. The mission is to highlight invisible illness from infertility to PTSD to multiple sclerosis to fibromyalgia, among other illnesses. The objective is to elicit compassion and use the project as an educational resource to understanding a variety of health issues.

HOW IT STARTED AND WHERE IT’S GOING

At the top of September 2017, it was a simple Facebook post that asked people to comment with a selfie if they have invisible illnesses. Some 100 plus photos later, Leslie knew the project in her head was much bigger than she could imagine. Photos will be taken at conspicuous Baton Rouge locations, such as downtown, Old South, Mid City, LSU, SUBR/Scotlandville, Gus Young, etc. It is our hope to cover a variety of Baton Rouge zip codes. The project will culminate in a reception where the exhibit will be shown on May 29 (tentative). This date commemorates the 67th birthday of Lucy Reyes, mother of The Picture of Health founder Leslie Rose, who was born with asthma and passed away due to complications of an asthma attack at age 49. The reception will include speakers in various healthcare professions addressing wellness, compassion, and other important topics surrounding invisible illness.

A LITTLE MORE INFO FOR MODELS

* Shoots will be between 5–12 minutes long each. Sessions will be announced once enough interest questionnaires have been received.

* Attire: Wear what you normally wear. This includes regular, everyday hair and make-up.

* What do you get: You will receive a digital copy of your best images once exhibit details have been finalized. You will be permitted to use the image in any way you wish, however you will be asked to share it for promotional purposes as well.