Pink October in Rochefort: the broken mirrors of photographer Dorothée Machabert

In the middle of Pink October, Rochefort-based photographer Dorothée Machabert presents Lucie's portrait in the Pink Ribbon Photo Award competition

This is the second time that Rochefort-based photographer Dorothée Machabert has entered Estée-Lauder's Pink Ribbon Photo Award competition. And once again, her black and white image 2025 has been selected for the final. The goal? To raise awareness of early detection of breast cancer for Pink October. As Rochefort prepares to host the Demoiselles race this Saturday, October 11 at 4:30 p.m. at Place Colbert , the artist explains her approach.

"This image tells the story of Lucie, whom I met in the Loire region. After a preventive double mastectomy, she agreed to confront her reflection in my broken mirrors. Entrusting me with such an intimate story was an act of trust. This photo sheds light on a lesser-known aspect of breast cancer: preventive mastectomy, a difficult decision that affects both the body and identity," explains the portraitist.

This photo belongs to the series "The Other and Me" that Dorothée Machabert began in 2018. In it, she explores the fractures of identity, "where the body becomes a tension between interiority and appearance, between the gaze given and the gaze received. The broken mirrors recompose the bodies, metaphors for trauma and intimate and psychological upheavals. The scars become language and raw poetry." After the difficulty of recognizing oneself following an operation, it is about finding oneself again.

Dorothée Machabert does not seek to embellish or glamorize the disease.

Lucie, the model who felt "in tatters" after her hospitalization, recounts the benefits of the photoshoot: "I was able to find myself beautiful through my flaws highlighted by this mirror. It was a way to re-know myself in this new reconstructed body," says the one who came out of the shoot "at peace and unified to regain confidence and love myself again."

Dorothée Machabert's work is also political : showing a marked, fragmented body isn't just about telling a personal story. "It's about revealing how the flaws or recompositions bear the traces of social norms, collective injunctions, and silent resistance. Because these individual stories resonate with collective issues: the right to medical choice (preventive mastectomy), the memory of symbolic violence (on gender, on maternity), the social burden of "different" bodies."

Indeed, Dorothée Machabert is not trying to embellish or glamorize the disease. "I try to show pivotal moments: fear, doubt, and the possibility of reconstruction." Even though the artist is participating in this competition, she does not think of her photos "for" breast cancer and is also annoyed by Pink October. "Prevention must be defended all year round. And in addition to raising awareness about screening, we should tackle the causes of breast cancer," says the artist, who also works on climate change (1).

Until October 15, if you like Dorothée Machabert's photo, you can vote once a day: https://prixdupublicteva-pinkribbonphotoaward.fr /

(1) She will present on the subject in the Aurore room in November 2025.