Numerous contemporary artists, particularly female artists, have chosen to examine the idealization of the female body. In this crucial book, Emily L. Newman focuses on a number of key themes including obesity, anorexia, bulimia, dieting, self-harm, and female body image. Many artists utilize their own bodies in their work, and in the act of trying to critique the diet industry, they also often become complicit, as they strive to lose weight themselves. Making art and engaging eating disorder communities (in real life and online) often work to perpetuate the illnesses of themselves or others. A core group of artists has worked to show bodies that are outside the norm, paralleling the rise of fat activism in the 1990s and 2000s. Interwoven throughout this inclusive study are related interdisciplinary concerns including sociology, popular culture, and feminism.

众多当代艺术家，特别是女性艺术家，都选择审视女性身体的理想化。在这本至关重要的书中，艾米丽-L-纽曼专注于一些关键的主题，包括肥胖症、厌食症、暴食症、节食、自我伤害和女性身体形象。许多艺术家在他们的作品中利用自己的身体，在试图批判饮食行业的行为中，他们也经常成为同谋，因为他们自己也在努力减肥。制作艺术和参与饮食失调社区（在现实生活中和网上）往往会使自己或他人的疾病长期存在。一批核心的艺术家致力于展示超出常规的身体，与20世纪90年代和21世纪的脂肪活动主义的兴起相呼应。在这项包容性的研究中，交织着相关的跨学科关注，包括社会学、流行文化和女权主义。