WONDER, GIRL!


A campaign designed to highlight young women breaking stereotypes so that the teens and tweens coming behind them don't have to.

One day I complimented a teen girl who had just finished her ballet class; she was extraordinarily good.  I asked her if ballet was what she wanted to do with her life.  She responded, “Oh no, I can’t. I’m Filipino, and I like grunge.”  What she meant by that was that there were no role models for her… no successful Filipino ballerinas (especially those with a grunge aesthetic) for her to aspire to.  Responses like this came again and again as I volunteered with programs like Big Sisters.  Teens need to see themselves represented. We need them to know that EVERYTHING is possible.  

 

Girls get bombarded with messages about what is seemingly acceptable given their body types or shapes, or hair texture, gender, intelligence, aptitude for sports, music, etc. It is time for a new narrative. It is time that all girls feel empowered to be their authentic selves and to follow their passions. It is time that girls feel empowered to truly and openly wonder about all possibilities. 


Because of this I started a photographic project titled, Wonder, girl!  The Wonder, girl! project is one effort towards that inspiration. It is time to paste new images into the social landscape, images of young women in jobs and settings not thought typical within current stereotypes.  It is time to reinforce for teen girls the idea that ALL things are possible.  So far, I have photographed over 40 diverse personalities.  These are examples of young women breaking stereotypes all across North America.  Teens need to see them.  We all need to see them. 

 

If you are an individual or organization working to empower women and girls and you think any of these images could support your efforts, let’s talk about how we can work together.  Please contact me at patti@patriciafortlage.com or 650.393.3569 or feel free to use the Contact page on this site. 

Each piece of art is available in multiple sizes, simply go to the Print Shop and click on the shopping cart icon next to your chosen image to purchase. Or reach out directly... email: patti@patriciafortlage.com, phone: 650.393.3569