The exhibition centre BOZAR in Brussels, having opened the lavish exhibition Bellezza e Bruttezza (Beauty and Ugliness) on 20 February 2026 – running until 14 June 2026 – which explores beauty and ugliness in the Renaissance, continues to reflect on the concept of “the beautiful” in the present day. Its new photography and video exhibition “Picture Perfect – Beauty Through a Contemporary Lens” raises highly topical questions.
What does it mean to be beautiful today? Who decides? And how do images shape the way we perceive ourselves and others? Picture Perfect brings together the work of 65 artists from different continents and generations and examines how lens-based media have played a key role in shaping Western standards of beauty. At once critical and emancipatory, the exhibition unfolds as a manifesto-like declaration, seeking not only to question inherited ideals but also to expand and reimagine beauty as a space of freedom, diversity and humanity.
Whether we acknowledge it or not, the pursuit of beauty permeates everyday life. From the bathroom mirror to social media feeds, from magazine covers to cosmetic surgery clinics, the pressure to look “perfect” has become a pervasive reality. Youthful, flawless skin, a toned body and an impeccable smile have become daily benchmarks against which self-esteem is measured.
Photography occupies a central place within the exhibition. Historically, it has played a major role in shaping beauty standards, promoting aesthetic trends and products across the globe. Yet it also contains the seeds of critique. Rather than directly opposing aestheticisation, Picture Perfect embraces the ambiguity of the lens, foregrounding a dialogue between the artwork, the artist and the viewer. The exhibition decentralises the gaze, broadening the notion of beauty and challenging the authority to define desirability. At the same time, while addressing the oppressive aspects of beauty, the exhibition avoids moralising. Instead, it creates space for reflection and invites visitors to question the way they see the world.
“Picture Perfect encourages us to open our eyes and reconsider the standards of physical beauty that society attempts to impose upon us,” said Zoë Gray, Director of Exhibitions at BOZAR. “Yet in a world quick to judge, this exhibition is the very opposite of judgement. Instead, it is open, generous, playful and inspiring. It enhances self-confidence while introducing audiences to the work of a wide range of artists, from established masters to emerging voices.”
The exhibition poster features an iconic work by the Swiss artist and pioneer of video art Pipilotti Rist, in which she presses her face against the screen until her features become distorted, turning what appears to be a childlike gesture into an act of resistance. Smearing her lipstick, she subverts the codes of beauty and exposes the symbolic violence of the idealised images that saturate public space. Her silent cry challenges the advertising and fashion imagery that celebrate perfection and desire. Balancing humour with discomfort, Rist denounces the confinement of the female body within the frameworks of the media and patriarchal norms. She opens a poetic breach – a rupture of refusal, a rebellion against the superficial.
I was fortunate that Haley Morris-Cafiero was part of my group during the guided tour of the exhibition. She is a contemporary American artist and photographer known for her performative self-portraits that explore society’s attitudes towards the body, appearance and social stereotypes. With great humour, she spoke about her photo project The Bully Pulpit – her response to a stream of abusive emails and social media messages triggered by her series of public self-portraits Wait Watchers (2015). The artist, who had been criticised for her appearance and weight, examined the profile photographs of her online harassers and then imitated them, posing in wigs with grotesque props and accessories. Each image includes the original insulting comments, emphasising that in the digital sphere – unlike spoken words – published insults remain forever. Haley skilfully uses humour to condemn the tyranny of beauty ideals and the toxic behaviour enabled by anonymity on the internet.
I would call the project “And who are the judges?” After all, the people bullying her online were hardly paragons of beauty themselves.