Kiss it! is the result of a twelve-year collaboration between a photographer and Shannon, a young woman living with obesity. Over more than a decade, the project follows her transition from adolescence into adulthood, documenting everyday experiences including friendships, relationships, family life, school events, holidays and work.

The book grew out of a wider long-term investigation into obesity among children and young adults in the UK, where obesity rates continue to rise and are linked to a complex combination of social, biological and environmental factors. Despite this complexity, public perceptions often reduce the issue to individual responsibility and self-control.

Against this backdrop, Shannon opened her life to the camera, allowing for the creation of an intimate and deeply personal portrait. Rather than focusing on stereotypes or statistics, the photographs foreground lived experience, vulnerability and humanity, offering a nuanced reflection on what it means to live in a body that is so often judged without empathy or understanding.