“Leisure Tanning” examines the process of tanning both from the sun and an artificial light source. The first image depicts a Finsen light therapy set-up. This procedure (named after Niels Ryberg Finsen) won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1903 and used ultraviolet wavelengths to destroy skin tuberculosis. As a side effect, the skin exposed to the light was darkened. It wasn’t until the late 1930’s, however, that similar UV lamps began being used for tanning purposes. The popularization of tanning can be traced to Coco Chanel who, in 1922 accidentally sunburned while visiting the French Riviera. Ironically, her look was widely accepted by her fans, and darker skin tones instantly became more desirable.
Throughout the 1950’s and ‘60’s, tanning grew in popularity with metallic UV reflectors being common on beaches and personal sunlamps existing in many homes across Europe and the U.S. Then in 1978, the first tanning beds were introduced by Friedrich Wolff. They spread extremely rapidly and by 1990 there were an estimated 10,000 outlets in the U.S. alone. Today, there are over 50,000 outlets with beds featuring ergonomic contours, audio, and sessions lasting under twelve minutes.
Recently, however, scientists at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Children’s Hospital developed a cream that prevents malignant melanoma, while also darkening the skin without any UV light. The drug has only been tested on mice, but many see potential for it both as cancer-prevention tool and a harmless tanning procedure.
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