40 over 40 project

WORDS: Vanessa van Straaten PHOTOGRAPHY Vanessa van Straaten

The 40 Over Forty Project is a portrait, magazine, and exhibition experience celebrating women over forty and the extraordinary lives they lead. Gold Coast photographer Vanessa Van Straaten of VVS Portrait brought the project to the Gold Coast to give back to the women who have spent so long doing everything for everyone else. It is a day entirely for them. A chance to be pampered, photographed beautifully, and reminded that beauty does not fade with age. It only deepens.

Each woman receives a full portrait experience including professional hair and makeup, a guided session with Vanessa, and the opportunity to see herself the way others have always seen her. Their stories are then told in a commemorative magazine that is as much keepsake as publication. There is an exhibition for the magazine launch, which also connects all the women who have been a part of that edition of the project.

The Third Edition Exhibition and Magazine Launch took place on Saturday 7th June at Green Fields Rooftop Bar in Robina on the Gold Coast. Over 100 women gathered to celebrate the 40 women featured in this year’s magazine. Inspirational speakers took to the microphone, and every guest went home with their own copy of the magazine. Proudly sponsored by Fernwood Fitness Robina, BConnected World and Sculpted Peach.

The Fourth Edition is already underway with nearly a third of spots filled. Shoots run September 2026 through to February 2027, with the Exhibition and Magazine Launch planned for March 2027 during Women’s History Month.