"Labiaplasty," one of the most requested types of plastic surgery

One inspiration behind the Vagina China project is our realization that many women have questions about the appearance of their vulva. Unless you are an obstetrician, or have been intimately involved with several women, chances are you haven't seen what other women look like down there.

With the shocking statistics about the rise in labiaplasty (the surgical removal of some or all of the labia), we decided to add to the visual discourse in our own way—by putting it all out on the table. True, there have been some great art projects created to address these questions, but we wanted to take it a step further. We envisioned a project that has the potential to heal, empower, build community, and shift conventional thinking.

We are against body shaming in all forms and we believe that we all have the right to do what we want with our body. Stopping the practice of labiaplasty is not our mission—but we do want to help build women's self esteem through our project by displaying the beauty and wide diversity of our bodies so that women considering the procedure can make informed decisions based on what real women look like.

The Perfect Vagina documentary is a fascinating exploration of why so many women are choosing to get labiaplasty for cosmetic reasons; and why it is so important to have conversations and raise awareness so that women don't opt for surgery because they think something is wrong with them since their visual references are altered or airbrushed. More reading here and here.

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