IMAGE ISN'T EVERYTHING,
BUT
Identity Is
KNOWING WHO YOU ARE MAKES IT EASIER
TO STOP JUDGING OTHERS.
by Amanda Russo
I
mage isn’t everything. Although
try telling that to one of the
Kardashians who has built an
empire on image alone. I’m sure
KKW would argue that there’s a
certain creative talent and skill to
crafting such an image, which would
make it more of an art (subjective)
than a science (objective). And to
an artist, their craft IS everything.
I see that passion every day in my
OMG. I think I just convinced
myself that the Kardashians are
artists. And relevant. Excuse me
while I go cower in a corner and
question everything I thought I
knew about the world.
OK, I’m back. Here’s how I reconcile
myself with the first paragraph.
Image isn’t everything…but identity
is. Your image is something that
can be crafted to support your
“YOUR IMAGE IS SOMETHING THAT CAN BE
CRAFTED TO SUPPORT YOUR IDENTITY...BUT IT
DOESN’T WORK IN REVERSE. ”
clients, and it’s part of what drives
my mission to help them defiantly
thrive.
18 • BADASSERY MAGAZINE
identity, and it absolutely should;
but it doesn’t work in reverse.
Identity cannot be manufactured.
Identity is collective. Identity is
the sum of the parts. Identity is
the recording artist, while image is
just one of the tracks on its album.
The sound of each album changes
over time to reflect the evolution of
the artist, which is something that
happens naturally, without man-
made interference. Image is an
art; identity is a science.
So, if image is an art, it’s easy to
see how the world of influencers
has emerged, with the help of
predominantly
visual
social
media platforms like Instagram.
I admit, I was not the biggest fan
of Instagram in the beginning.
As a Gen X-er who grew up
with MySpace, and eventually
Facebook, I was accustomed to
lots of WORDS and EXPLANATION
in my friends’ profiles. Explain to
me who you are so that I won’t
misjudge you. And then show me