Pretty. Strong. Fierce.

Welcome to my first post where I reflect on either on a political or feminist topic.  I was originally going to write something to give readers a better idea of where I come from politically and as a feminist.  However, I came across the new MAC Cosmetics Strength collection yesterday, and that inspired this post where I intend to explore it in terms of feminism, beauty, and power.

Yesterday I learned that Mac Cosmetics recently launched a new collection called Strength which features a muscly model in the centerpiece of its advertising material. Serbian born fitness model and competitor Jelena Abbou wears the bold, dark colors of the new collection on her face as well as a clingy, black dress in a lighting situation that emphasizes every exposed arm muscle on her body, giving them the focus they deserve.

I am fascinated by this campaign for multiple reasons. First, I personally love makeup and making things pretty, so anytime there is promise of pretty new things I get a little cheery. Secondly, as another lady who lifts weights, I commend MAC for choosing to use a female body builder to inspire their latest line. Finally, this strikes me as an interesting episode for women, and I want to think about this campaign in terms of feminism, beauty, and power.

As this campaign is still advertising a make-up product, the topic is inherently troublesome for anyone familiar with the beauty myth; Make-up is typically marketed to women, women feel bad about their natural looks in comparison to the model in the advertisement that embodies the often unattainable beauty standard, and ultimately women are exploited by their shame and attempt to attain that unattainable standard with the product.

And yet, by using a body builder as opposed to the typical straight-sized waif, MAC also defies the traditional myth its product supports: the woman of the western standard of beauty is often a toned, fit, but never muscular woman.  Samantha Escobar at Blisstree explains the contradictions expected of women in their article about this new collection:

There’s a peculiarly particular balance of so-called feminine qualities that our society tends to tolerate. Women are supposed to be lean but not muscular; athletic but not defined; soft but never squishy. It’s a balance few of us are completely capable of achieving, whether it’s because of ability or simply genetics.

I am personally happy to see a woman with obvious physical power depicted in a glamorous way.  I must admit my own preference for wearing makeup tints my opinion on this, and to be honest, my mood tends to influence just how offended I get about women believing they need makeup when they are already beautiful for different reasons.

But make no mistake: I always feel at least some offense over this perceived need.  Not because women are frivolous for wanting to look pretty, but because society has so strongly force fed us the notion that we need to look pretty or we are otherwise power-less or value-less.  In the patriarchal society of the beauty myth, we are value-less if men do not find us attractive, and you must also look attractive in terms of what media images dictate is beautiful.  In this way, the beauty standard can be understood as a means of stripping women of power, not to mention energy that gets spent trying to attain that image.

The Strength campaign complicates things, though, because our image in this advertisement is strong and beautiful.  MAC has a history of non-conventional muses, including drag queen characters, comic book heroines, and Disney villains (including male villains), so it is not completely out of left field for them to use someone out of the norm.  You have to give them credit for not only using her, but highlighting her strength, literally, with the lighting and photography.  I believe MAC does this both for shock value to entice potential customers, but also because our culture is beginning to embrace a wider range for what counts as beautiful.  Again, that is partially a marketing strategy on the part of MAC to get women to feel better about themselves, therefore more willing to trust the company and focus on the product without feeling shame.  If advertising wants to head in this direction, I would not complain too much.

It’s not difficult for the cynic in me to argue that the Strength collection still uses an otherwise conventionally beautiful woman for its advertising.  Sure, she is strong, but she is still thin, in shape, and has beautiful skin (even if we know these images have gone through several photoshop filters and airbrush editing).  Abbou is a model by profession.  And, strong as she may be, she is definitely still advertising make-up products, an integral part of the beauty myth described earlier.

However, I am optimistic about a campaign that is willing to make a strong woman the focus.  It’s a positive way to remind women that you actually can be both beautiful and powerful, and it’s up to you whether you decided to be either, both, or none.

I stopped purchasing products from MAC  after I learned Estee Lauder acquired the company, leading both to a decrease in product quality and an apparent increase in animal cruelty.  If at least the animal cruelty thing has changed, I would be happily convinced by the bodacious and buff Abbou images to buy a deep cherry lipstick.  For now, I will stick to Urban Decay.

What do you think?  I am half-tired while finishing this post, so some things may be off-base or inconherent.  Please challenge me on this and/or offer your perspective!

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