Coppafeel! puts bare boobs on show to ‘desexualise and re-feminise’ in #whatnormalfeelslike campaign
Breast cancer awareness charity Coppafeel! is looking to ‘desexualise and re-feminise the language people use for breasts in its latest campaign, which ties in with the 2014 launch of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
For the #whatnormalfeelslikecampaign, created in collaboration with photographer Rankin and calligrapher Alison Carmichael, Coppafeel! photographed seven topless women with hand-lettered calligraphy written across their chests, describing their breasts.
The idea for the campaign, created by Karmarama, was generated after the charity found that most women aged 18-30 struggle to find other words than ‘big’ or ‘small’ when asked to describe their breasts.
By introducing different adjectives like ‘squidgy’, ‘bouncy’ and ‘spongy’, Coppafeel! is hoping that young women will be “inspired to reclaim” the language around their boobs.
Karmarama’s art director, Laila Milborrow, and copywriter Paul Pearson, said the voice of the campaign “desexualises and re-feminises” the language people use for breasts, and young women need to own this vocabulary to find out what normal feels like.
Rankin said of the campaign: “I love the simplicity of the images and the reaction they provoke from the viewer; it emphasises how rare it is to see breasts shown in an honest and non-sexualised way in the media.
“People talk about breasts as ‘big’ or ‘small’ but we don’t talk about shape, texture and sensitivity. This campaign aims to help women reclaim the vocabulary around breasts and know what normal feels like for them.”
The campaign, which will run for six weeks across all media channels, also aims to communicate the fact that “normal doesn’t equal flawless”.