Trudie and Ben comment on “Trudie, Beauty Mask 2011”:

Ben about photographing Trudie:

“Each time I saw Trudie with the mask it took me by surprise. Something about it was aboriginal. One day we were in the bathroom and I saw it again. I couldn’t let it go by any longer. I had to photograph Trudie with the mask.”

Trudie about being photographed:

“I’m thinking, oh no, please don’t photograph me with the mask because I know that there’s a good chance this image will be displayed in public. And what am I going to look like, will I look ok and will people judge me? When Ben told me he wanted to use this image for our holiday card, I said no way. It took me almost two weeks to agree. At one point I asked Ben why he liked it so much.”

Ben about the image:

“It shows an intimate moment that you don’t normally think of sharing because it’s behind-the-scenes. It’s not about presenting yourself to your public or “looking good”, it’s about the energy, about being authentic. I believe there is too much at stake in the reality of these moments to keep them hidden. So far as they are true, they are not fragile unless we neglect them. The only way to test their authenticity is to bring them into the world.”