More than touch-ups

Are we reduced to smoothed contours?
Photo appropriated and edited by yours truly

I realize this post may echo the one I wrote about imperfections, but I just stumbled upon an article about journalist Esther Honig's photoshopped autoportrait - that I had read a little while back - and I couldn't resist adding an opinion out there, in the ocean of opinions-about-photoshopping. Oh the Photoshop debate. Should we, shouldn't we, is it an inherent bad thing to touch up a reddish face or a lousy tan, even a crooked nose. It seems this debate is never ending. Hey I remember being little and chatting (in a very little-me manner of course) with my graphic designer uncle, and never once wondering about or debating the idea that a lady on a magazine looking thinner, tanner, firmer, would be worse than a better looking BMW on a cover.

In the flow of recent articles about photoshopping, you find the one about Lena Dunham's Vogue cover (such familiarity with Lena Dunham, I realize. You may think she's the only person I know of, but be assured of the contrary. Get worried when I start speaking about her as "Lena"), but there is always a fuss about any overly photoshopped model or celebrity. Cars and fruit as well. It even feels as though the #nofilter trend has taken this touching up concept to a new level. What is it with us and having to display only smooth, perfect surfaces? Yet, one could also ask, what is with us and a little touch-up here and there so that last night's hangover doesn't show on the photos. Both arguments make sense for different reasons, and for this reason the Photoshop debate will surely last. Nevertheless, whether we are more seduced by one argument than the other, it poses interesting questions about the human quest for beauty, especially in the digital era. And especially since the image we display of ourselves, of our beauty, is now grounded not only in real life but in the virtual sphere as well. Facebook, Instagram, but also avatars on any website. It seems we only want to display the best of ourselves, with no facial screw-ups. Sometimes it makes sense in terms of marketing (we haven't yet reached an era where imperfect things sell), but doesn't it pose multiple questions, namely in terms of cultural differences in terms of the perception of beauty.

And this is exactly what Esther Honig is attempting to highlight in her experience. Indeed, she asked about 40 graphic designers in 25 different countries to photoshop a portrait of her, giving one direction "Make me beautiful". The results are drastically different whether the autoportrait came back from Morocco or Germany, the US or Greece. And they show that the criteria of beauty of one country are sometimes unexpected. Indeed, from her portraits, the nationality of graphic designers is hardly identifiable. Even worse, her home country, the US, seems to have taken extreme measures and changed the shape of her face, but also her hair, leading up to an unrecognizable version of Honig. All in all, an interesting exercise to analyze the multiplicity of ways one can interpret beauty. And therefore the multiplicity of ways we can pursue our individual beauty. One thing remains, it does seem we all have a taste for smooth contours and pure-looking skin - thus often driving us back to our best friend Photoshop, and its touch-ups.

Complimenting imperfections

Outlines of Lena Dunham in the series "Girls" (by me)

Beauty has evolved throughout the years. Hollywood beauty years ago did not resemble what it has become today, just as we do not identify with the Versailles Court's beauty criteria. Indeed, the quest for beauty took an entirely other form. Think of the mouches nobles applied to their face because it complemented their look. Think of corsets that made women have tiny waists, even they had to stop breathing throughout the day. Now issues are not about asphyxiating yourself to look beautiful, or powdering yourself with white, but about anorexia, lack of self-confidence, and other cases of beauty mischiefs.

Thankfully, this era's quest for beauty seems to take a new turn with newly emerged codes and acceptance of the body as it is. Would "As you are" be the new beautiful, at last? While there are still numerous cases of women changing their body to attain an ideal (dictated by Elle or Vogue, but they're not alone, or the show business), there is a growing realization that what may be beautiful is the body left untouched, the natural traits of a person, as polarized from beauty ideals as they may be. There is a new place for curvy, round, for gapped teeth, broad shoulders, small breasts, short legs, for thick eyebrows and long teeth, pale skin, dark skin, crooked smiles and unstoppable freckles, for red, and blue, for uncontrolled blushing and morning eye bags. Sure, it may not be easy at all ages, or in all places. But I feel there is a growing awareness that there are all kinds of beauties, and therefore a multitude of ways to attain this or that physical appearance.

It's a fascinating era, allowing new possibilities for the human body, but more importantly for accepting it the way it was brought onto this Earth. It feels like we can breathe better, up is up and down is down, and being ourselves is more and more embraced. The trends of "stars without makeup" articles or "curvy models" starring in campaigns show more openness about the ideals of beauty. There is also more and more speaking out against photoshopping photos, from various sources such as supermodel Gisele Bundchen, using her powerful status to defend that women should stay "real and raw" when represented. Plus, it seems that imperfections - or at least as they were called out by the beauty industry - are becoming a trend of their own, with models such as Winnie Harlow, Georgia May Jagger or Lindsey Wixson. Embracing your imperfections seems to be all the rage.

This is also why I chose Lena Dunham as a representation for this article. Apart from magazines, TV series are great influencers in our perception of beauty. Therefore, it plays an immense role in the way the quest for beauty evolves. I've come to love the series Girls, in which Lena Dunham stars as the main character, Hannah. This is another representation of the liberalization of the body. Lena does not hesitate to show her body, as different as it is from the mainstream ideals of beauty. In doing so, I believe it is creating a real tank for future changes in the way we pursue beauty and in the way we see ourselves. This is also what the website Herself is trying to achieve, by displaying nude photos of absolutely raw and real women. And this should be the future of beauty: being able to see and appreciate it in everyone, in all its forms.

On that note, feel free to visit The Atlas of Beauty for 27 beautiful portraits of women around the world, and Herself, which attempts to give a new image of women's bodies

And wander off to this song:

On my experience of Japanese quest for beauty #1

Girls in kimono during the Lantern Festival, in Tokyo (Photo owned by me)

As I've written before, I have lived 4 years in Japan. Granted, that isn't enough to grasp all things about a culture; granted, I am no expert on Japan and Japanese people. Yet, what drives me crazy in that culture is largely compensated by numerous fascinating elements, that make Tokyo home. One of the thing that fascinates me most is the place beauty holds in Japanese women's lives.

Everyday was a surprise in Tokyo. Going out in the city was always an adventure, as I always discovered something new, even doing the most normal/boring thing such as food shopping. Hey, you should see the tofu shelf or the fish department in an average Japanese store. It's a haven for pescetarians - fishlovers - truly.

As it is the case in most cultures, how the quest for beauty is incarnated varies from generation to generation, and is often very characteristic to an era. It's definitely the case in Japanese culture. Japanese girls, and apparently around the age of 12-13, start caring about their appearance, mostly to fit in with their friends. They can actually choose from a panel of countless transformations, as Japan is known to be a nest for eccentricity and the multiplicity of styles, so these girls can choose from a panel of transformations. The beginning of the quest of beauty for young Nippon girls first means discovering a new side of life, away from middle school exams, and night classes to prepare them. Teenage girls start getting interested in cosmetic products and want to look like their favorite idols or manga character. While some girls turn to extreme looks such as the Super Girly girl (burikko, pretending to be cute) like the AKB48 stars (they are all the rage in Japan, attracting both young girls, boys, but also older men..), or otaku (manga/anime-obsessed), the beauty codes that are most common and most fancied by boys are more natural make-up. In fact, even as they grow up, Japanese girls fancy the "perfect finish" beauty styling.

The quest for beauty in Japan is incredible: Japanese women put 14 beauty products, on average. That's about 7 make-up products, and 7 skincare products. Layering, to attain the Perfect Finish beauty ideal. And I'm not even mentioning hair products. Talk about transforming yourself. I was amazed at how flawless some women become after meticulous application of their layers. In fact, this sense of layering has inspired beauty brands to develop adapted products. The layering to Japanese women is what mixing products (that inspired the BB cream) is to Korean women.

But it goes further that just buying products. While cosmetic product sales have been rising on a year-by-year basis, there is more to it. The desire to be beautiful seems to know no bounds. But more of that later.

Through others' eyes

Photography by David Sims for French Vogue August Issue n°949, modified by me

My first year of high school, I moved to Japan with my parents. I had lived in Detroit for the past four years – Detroit, Michigan, USA – and I had never been kept up at night by beauty or the quest of beauty as concepts. 

Beauty as a sociological matter never hit me as much as in Japan. The quest for beauty had never been so palpable. The quest for specific attributes, the quest to attain certain physical traits, comparing oneself to pale-skinny-big-eyed-girls who looked like they were twelve, seemed to be the rage. At least from where I stood. Suddenly, what I had always called pale became “fair”, and what I saw as unhealthy skinny became fashionably thin. At the same time, the tiny noses and thick black hair I envied weren’t enough for Japanese girls. Suddenly, it became clear that what seemed so obviously beautiful through my eyes, was a whole other set of adjectives through someone else’s. 

Living in Tokyo opened me up to countless encounters of incarnated quest for beauty. I became fascinated with the tendency to transform one's body to a new form. One would think the quest for beauty has never been so vivid than in the 21st century. Sure, the cosmetic industry, the plastic surgery empire, and constant innovations for new ways to mask our imperfections, enhance our perfections and glamour our traits, would be enough to conclude to that now is the era of metamorphosis. But the quest for beauty, and the recognition that beauty may be present in the human body, if exposed, has been present for centuries. Maybe even since the beginning of mankind. This is where it gets interesting. 

It seems that the representation of what beauty entitles has not been the same from one century to another. Let alone been unique within one era. The first representations of mankind were found on tombs. Maybe this is when the quest for beauty began. Yet, the criteria beauty was judged upon were probably, evidently, different.

I find fascinating how relative beauty criteria are. Who is beautiful, what is beautiful, am I beautiful. And it seems to be the talk on everyone's lips today. More and more we turn to beauty we had not considered. We look at different, we look at atypical, we look at deformed, and wonder if it wouldn't also be beautiful. Or rather she, or he, wouldn't also be beautiful. The relativeness of beauty criteria fascinate me. So do the attempts to look at new ways we can celebrate the human body. New ways we can transform it. That's all part of the quest for beauty. Dressing the body up, putting make-up on, tattoos, implants, body creams, gels, serums, powder, foundation, lipstick. Exfoliating, pulping, firming, hydrating, lighting. We have developed an infinite set of words to describe how we transform the body. Such a set comes with a palette of possibilities to alter the human form to pursue beauty. But upon different criteria.

Such differences are even more current with globalization. There is a gradual realization that there is not only one ideal beauty, but rather a multiplicity of beauties. I will try to explore the ways we, as humans, view beauty, its criteria, its leading issues, depending on the time period, but also on geography and culture. Try to grasp the underlying elements of the quest for beauty.