Spotted by My Modern Met, these disturbing images of the everyday lives of a group of extremely muscular kids captured by Belgian photographer Kurt Stallaert for his personal project Bodybuilder’s World may look real, but they’re not — and thank goodness for that. His photos — which provoke the viewer in a way that recalls German photographer Martin Schoeller’s portraits of female bodybuilders — are actually doctored, grafting the ripped bodies of professional gymgoers onto the faces of angelic children. Works of fiction or not, the end result is pretty unsettling, don’t you think?
Photo credit: Kurt Stallaert
Photo credit: Kurt Stallaert
Photo credit: Kurt Stallaert
Photo credit: Kurt Stallaert
Photo credit: Kurt Stallaert
Photo credit: Kurt Stallaert
Photo credit: Kurt Stallaert
Photo credit: Kurt Stallaert
Photo credit: Kurt Stallaert