In this text, I would like to talk about a part of my project called the “Mirror Project.” The idea
came to me during my first weeks at the youth center. In the hall, there was a big mirror that
caught my attention. I thought it would be a great place to share ideas and information,
because everyone could see it while passing by.

First, I made a list of ideas for each month. I especially focused on topics where I wanted to
raise awareness. As you can see from the picture I added to my text, the first decoration I
prepared was about body positivism. In today’s world, especially young people have many
concerns about their body image, so I wanted to focus on this topic.

While preparing this work, I noticed something interesting. I wanted it to be inclusive, so I
searched for visuals and studies about body image concerns for all genders. However, when
it comes to body positivism, most of the pictures and studies mainly focus on women. Since I
wanted to prepare separate sections on the mirror for different genders, it was difficult to find
materials and visuals for men. In general, because society puts more pressure on women,
especially during adolescence, most affirmation photos include female illustrations.

But does this mean that only women suffer from these concerns? Of course not. I believe
that men are often overlooked in this topic. Especially in male-dominated societies, talking
about body image is usually limited to the gym context. Because of this, adolescent boys
who consume toxic and overwhelming content may also develop unhealthy body
perceptions. To highlight this, I added a “Did you know?” card on the mirror and shared the
results of a recent study. The study showed that 2 out of 4 teenage girls experience body
image issues, and 4 out of 8 teenage boys also share this problem.

In the following months, I continued decorating the mirror according to different themes.
During Halloween, I designed it in a fun way. I placed a paper fortune teller game (like the
one where you choose a number and pick a corner to reveal a message) inside a box with a
moustache theme. The idea was to create a funny game about our common fears. For
example, one note said, “I know you are afraid that there is a monster under your bed and
you can’t sleep at night.” I created this “fear guesser” for our youth center guests, and many
of the results were surprisingly accurate. It also showed that we all share similar fears and
anxieties.

The second main topic I chose was ‘Movember Awareness Month’ in November. Movember
is a global movement that encourages men to grow moustaches during November to raise
awareness about men’s health issues, such as prostate cancer, testicular cancer, and mental
health. In this month, I wanted my mirror to focus on raising awareness about men’s health
problems. I decorated the middle of the mirror with moustaches in different colors. The
guests who read the information on the mirror could also try on the moustaches I added : ) I
even created a “Strike a pose with a moustache” corner for our daily visitors. Since men who
support this movement grow moustaches in November, I made sure to include different
colors like brown and ginger, so no discrimination for their moustache color : ))

For the next month, the theme was Christmas. I decorated the mirror according to the
upcoming Christmas season. I added small train wagons in front of the mirror and decorated
them with ornaments. As you can see in the photo, I also hung a poster with good wishes for
the New Year. I prepared a small box with notes about what our guests could expect in the
new year, and everyone chose a paper from it. This New Year mirror decoration was especially meaningful for me because Christmas and New Year are the most exciting times
of the year for me.

The main purpose of using a mirror in my project was to create awareness by allowing
people to see their own reflection while reading the information. I wanted them to reflect on
their own thoughts and notice how we filter information through our personal experiences. I
would like to thank everyone who stood in front of the mirror, saw their own reflection, and
became a part of my project. Their reflection completed the whole point of the project which I
appreciate it .

 

– Zeynep,

ESC prostovoljka