Native Americans have long embraced the
practice of using war paint to communicate different messages via colors and
symbols during war. They were a highly spiritual people who conveyed their
thoughts and ideas through the extensive use of body and face paint. Wearing face paint is an ancient custom
originating in Egypt in 3000 BC. The
Egyptians were the first recorded people who cultivated beauty in an
extravagant way. Cosmetics and perfumes were prepared from berries, dyes,
crushed insects, leaves, barks and minerals. They infused essential oils from
flowers and leaves to make perfumes. Queen Nefertiti (circa 1400 BC) stained
her nails red by dipping her finger tips in henna, and sported lavishly
designed make up. Queen Cleopatra was known for her signature scents. The sea
became heavily perfumed when she sailed in her royal barge. Her beauty regimen
of ass’s milk bath or crushed pearls was legendary. Elaborate eyeliners
prepared from kohl made from ground galena, Sulphur and animal fat were used by
all Egyptians. It helped alleviate eye inflammation and glare from the sun.
Make up was not just decorative; it was used for divine purposes. Jars of
cosmetics have been found in tombs, so it was important enough to be carried to
the journey after life. The original painted Harlot was the mythic figure Semiramis, the mother-wife
of Nimrod. She was said to use make up for religious rituals In Babylon.
The Romans and Greeks were influenced by the
Egyptians and they too used fragrance and cosmetics lavishly. During the golden
age of Greece (circa 500 BC) hairstyling became a highly developed art. Greek
women applied preparations of white lead on their faces, kohl around their eyes
and vermillion on their cheeks and lips. These applications were mixed with
ointment or dusted on the skin in the same way cosmetics are applied today. In
ancient Rome hair tints indicated one’s status in society. Only noble women
could dye their hair red, middle class wore blond and black were the masses.
The Chinese royals had a complete monopoly on red nail lacquer. Commoners were
executed if they were caught using red on their nails. So if we look back at
the history of cosmetic use from the kohl-lined elaborate makeup to white
lead-based paint favored by the Elizabethans we will find women have always
experimented with color cosmetics. There
was a stigma attached to wearing color cosmetics in the Victorian era. Make up was the hallmark of ladies of the night,
not upper class or regular women.
It is common to hear phrases like, “I gotta
go slap on some warpaint.” Or, she is going to take hours in the bathroom
putting on her war paint for a night out in town. The use of the term war paint
is synonymous with an overabundance of makeup applied for the purpose hiding
what lies beneath. Women wish to hide their vulnerable selves behind a mask of
make up. This mask makes them feel ready to take on the outside world. The
question here is “why do most women wear makeup today when most men don’t?” I
say “most” men because rock stars like David Bowie, Prince or boy George had a
huge fan following in spite of flaunting a heavily made up face. Women have
been encouraged to look eye catching yet penalized if their efforts hit the
mark too easily. This is an example from
Hamlet’s angry tirade towards his beloved Ophelia: “God has given you one face,
but you make yourselves another. You jig and amble and you lisp. You nickname
God’s creatures and make wantonness your ignorance “So, you are damned if you
do and damned if you don’t. Make up
plays different roles at different stages of our lives. Girls start out playing with their mother’s
lipstick and face powder as early as age three or four. As pre-teens, some
girls start wearing eye shadow and lip gloss. Most girls graduate to
full-fledged make up by the time they are fifteen, their genuinely dewy
complexions covered by a mask of foundation in order to look more mature and
sexy. Advertisement plays a big role in this precocious use of makeup.
Statistics say seven out of ten women wear makeup to work every day. Most give
up thirty minutes of precious sleep every morning in order to put on makeup and
fix their hair. Some present the frightening spectacle of putting on mascara
with one hand and holding the steering wheel in the other. I have yet to see a
man hold anything other than food or beverage while driving. As the cosmetic stalwart Helena Rubenstein
said, “there are no ugly women, only lazy ones. “ Most women loath to appear
slothful in this area of their lives.
Can women advance up the career ladder,
lipstick in hand? Apparently yes. Along with required qualifications, career
women who wear restrained, muted makeup appear more likeable, competent and
worthy of advancement. A slash of red lipstick increases the contrast between
facial features and skin tones, new research claims. At other times crimson
lips increases a woman’s chance of being picked up by the opposite sex. A bright complexion, flushed cheeks and berry
red lips signal reproductive suitability. Women have always wanted to look, smell
and thus feel better about themselves.
In modern times, such goals became accessible to the masses only after
World War II. Around that time, advertisement began to promote the concept of
flawless beauty. This thinking took hold in the mind of women around the globe.
Today, women in Ghana and other African
countries can be seen spending hard earned money on bleaching creams and
other cosmetic products as they believe
white is truly better.
Everyone talks about aging gracefully, yet
there is not a single Congress woman or Senator or mayor in any US city who
sport an aging grey head. These women are in the public arena, they feel
intense pressure to project a youthful, energetic image. Most women take a
sneak peek at articles like “10 Makeup tricks to make you look younger”. There are numerous helpful tricks from
covering your under eye circles, filling out your thinning aged brows, dabbing
highlighter or using subtle contouring techniques. Most of us fail to follow
these helpful hints in our daily morning rush yet we succumb to buying the
catch all products again and again. This is why cosmetics are a recession proof
business. In times of economic hardship, the ordinary mom/ office worker may
not buy a new winter coat but will easily spring for a bright new lipstick or
the latest shade of nail lacquer.
I would conclude this discussion by saying
that women subject themselves to unnatural standards of perfection which is
hard to achieve even after using all the products we have in our arsenal. The
others are not looking for these assumed perfections. There is beauty in
originality. Instead of a cookie cutter homogeneous look, it is fine to
experiment with color and use make up only so far as to express our creative
side. We as women should now exhale and
give ourselves permission to be our best selves without being slaves of the
cosmetic tyrants and image makers. If going makeup free is your thing, it is
just as fine as a fully made up face.
The choice should be left to the woman alone.
[RIMI PATI]
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