Today we’d like to introduce you to Josephine Marie.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Josephine. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I was unknowingly doing self portraits for a few months when a male model from the Boston area contacted me on a private Instagram where I had shared the edits I would create with under 300 followers. He was branching out into photography and asked if I would be willing to model. Taking a chance, I set up a shoot and thankfully had a safe first experience. I had never liked being put in front of a camera and told to smile but this was nothing like that and something seemed just seemed to click. Shortly after my first shoot, the photographer’s agency expressed interest in me and while their eagerness was initially flattering I soon came to the decision that they were not worth the representation. In the meantime, however, my life on social media began to change drastically. Photographers, models and art admirers began requesting to follow my account and set up shoots with me. Thankfully, I met a handful of wonderful creatives who clued me into how Instagram is utilized by the creative community and with their help I launched and began developing @lil.alt.babi. Once I was released from my contract, I began focusing on freelancing and developing a brand for what I wanted the public to associate with my online presence. I saw and heard a lot of things that I found unacceptable but seemed to be widely accepted or unspoken of amongst the community members. I began sharing my opinions and my experiences with my audience and found that I was not alone.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Has anyone ever had a smooth ride through social media? It’s a hell hole! (Can I say that?) We all know media can be extremely toxic, especially, in regards to mental health, but it also is a tool some have created careers out of. I have recently become more open with my followers about the mental illnesses I deal with and the incidents that have influenced them. Thankfully, times are changing and mental health is becoming more understood, but it is also becoming popular in unison with pill popping. I would encourage everyone to take breaks from their social media and reconnect with the earth and life around them. I just recently opened up about how I had been treated unfairly and in return was publicly attacked by the person I had informed others of. It’s not a surprising reaction but the unwarranted viciousness of her response rocked my faith and the way she took advantage of my honesty and twisted it made me feel defenseless. I had to step away from my account and just returned a month later. Fellow models have had their accounts deactivated as a result of voicing up their truth about other creatives – it’s a cutthroat environment. My advice would be not to lose yourself trying to reach an idea of who you want to be, don’t define or value yourself in relation to your peers and lastly remember to hold tight to the things you believe and stand by and behind yourself because no one has changed the tide without taking a hit.
We’d love to hear more about Lil.alt.babi.
Honestly, I don’t do anything that special. What sets me apart is I bring up those topics that everyone else whispers about. I put my face and emotions on camera and tie them to a story of my experience. People can resonate with the things I bring up and they appreciate the fact that someone is talking about it. When I came into the industry, it was obvious in a very short period of time that I was the new face in Boston. No one reached out to me and warned or informed me of prior situations with certain creatives. Even after I had worked with people and mentioned them, no one thought to clue me in. Then, when you have a bad experience with a creative and tell other people they all open up with stories of how they saw it coming. My first experience with this was what really pushed me to start vocalizing what I went through in the pursuit of creating art. I fill a gap but what I really want to do is help close it. I am not in the industry with hopes of building a career as a model; I am in the industry with intentions of meeting likeminded individuals and coming together to collaboratively create something from nothing. So, I have different standards for myself and those I work with. I’m most proud of the people I have connected with, the fellow models who felt alone through these experiences but now make me feel whole, the young girls who look up to women like us but don’t realizing the reality of our daily experience and the photographers who have shown me the love and humanity we all deserve.
Do you recommend any apps, books or podcasts that have been helpful to you?
Honestly, My Favorite Murder is a podcast every woman should listen to. The lessons you can pull from it about power struggles, abusive and dangerous relationships and socially ingrained injustices is invaluable- plus it’s a refreshing take on tragedies.
I love music! I found so much inspiration through it yet at the same time find it to be heavily polluted. I try to stray from the mainstream, not to be cool, but because I know what it is like to be a struggling artist and I recognize the significance one supporter can have on your career. Honestly, the things that help me the most are not blogs, apps or other media but exercise, the outdoors and quality time with people I care for.
Contact Info:
- Email: josephinemodeling@gmail.com
- Instagram: @lil.alt.babi
Image Credit:
Peoneemoull Pech, Victoria Spanier, Jaieart (first horizontal image), Alberto Alejandro, Mikko Sage Angelica Dunong
Getting in touch: BostonVoyager is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
