She’s made of steel.
No, she is merely made“ of woman” — and that is enough.

Colette, The Vagabond

Strong & Sexy — The New Body Beautiful

I have always photographed strong women.

In the seventies I looked to my circle of friends for inspiration. We were women who dared to be different: feminist, independent, self-reliant, active women who felt there was nothing we could not do or be.

In the eighties, I focused my camera on another group of powerful women who display the essence of the feminine spirit: those who are working out and being athletic. They have taken the raw energy fueling their belief that they are capable of changing the world and have channeled it back to the foundation, to the physical body.

As I began photographing the women at my gym and at contests, I became fascinated by the aesthetic of the muscular female. Some of the women I chose for my book Strong & Sexy are competitors, some are champions, some are wives and mothers, and some are discovering their first real sport in body building.