Is skin bleaching just the same as getting a tan?

[LaraOnline]

Have had to laugh at this thread. 'Racism' can be such a huge and ungainly smear, and who knows to whom this accolade of nastiness is directed? Is it directed at white people who have the audacity to be white? Or is it directed at white people who have the audacity to be white and rich and surgically enhanced themselves and on tv?

Or perhaps 'racism' in this instance is a description directed towards the darker skinned individuals who are expressing their aesthetic preference for paler skin while mired in some racist, or indeed self-hating, fug?

so, who is the racist here? The darker skinned woman who wishes to be lighter, or the whiter skinned person who walks by. It's a rabbit hole I choose not to go down.

Actually I am reminded of the 'flaunting jewellery' thread, where we discussed whether 'flaunting' was a direct indicator of one's own desire for a diamond. why would you even want that diamond / flat stomach / big boobies / hair extensions / lighter skin?
Probably for an appearance of higher class, and perhaps even sexual success!

My personal choice is to abstain, as I don't need the flat stomach / big boobies / hair extensions etc to get by in life. People who do have cosmetic surgery often do appear to be happy with their choice though. Narcissists! Social climbers! they're making me look even more ordinary as a result.

 

[packrat]

I saw this yesterday on FB and found it interesting. A woman sent her picture to graphic designers all over the world and just said basically "make me beautiful according to your country's standards" and then put all the pictures together. Some of them are hugely different, some not very. http://www.dailyhiit.com/hiit-blog/hiit-life/one-way-beautiful/

 

[LaraOnline]

I remember reading about a study a few years ago that suggested that basic measurements of beauty such as symmetry, even structural aspects such as clear skin and high cheek bones etc are intrinsic across cultures. This article summarises a few elements of that article.

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog...eauty-culture-specific-or-universally-defined

 

[kenny]

I saw this yesterday on FB and found it interesting. A woman sent her picture to graphic designers all over the world and just said basically "make me beautiful according to your country's standards" and then put all the pictures together. Some of them are hugely different, some not very. http://www.dailyhiit.com/hiit-blog/hiit-life/one-way-beautiful/

Fascinating and clever project.

 

[LaraOnline]

Some of the photoshopping was not super-fantastic though imho.
Perhaps the participants of the studies were not actually photoshop professionals, but students from other fields, or less experienced photo shoppers?
Hopefully now her study has gotten so much good press, she will be able to entice the 'best and brightest' of the profession to participate going forward!

 

[distracts]

Some of the photoshopping was not super-fantastic though imho.
Perhaps the participants of the studies were not actually photoshop professionals, but students from other fields, or less experienced photo shoppers?
Hopefully now her study has gotten so much good press, she will be able to entice the 'best and brightest' of the profession to participate going forward!

I certainly think they were not experienced at photoshopping people, at any rate. Graphic design covers a whole range of things, and somebody who usually does websites or brochures or apps probably doesn't have the same skill set as someone who does people for magazines. I can photoshop people really well (I edit my photography for kicks) but I go "????" when friends want me to make interfaces for their apps. Want me to take your picture and make you look like a model? I can do that. Want me to make eighty buttons for your app? Beveling? 3-d effects? Hold on while I go drown myself. But those skills are what most graphic designers seem to have. (I missed out on them because I have no formal design knowledge and just like to plaaaaay.)

 

[packrat]

I don't think the photoshopping was all that fabulous either, but I thought it was interesting to see the different standards of beauty was all.

 

[Lady_Disdain]

I saw this yesterday on FB and found it interesting. A woman sent her picture to graphic designers all over the world and just said basically "make me beautiful according to your country's standards" and then put all the pictures together. Some of them are hugely different, some not very. http://www.dailyhiit.com/hiit-blog/hiit-life/one-way-beautiful/

I thought the idea interesting but the project was so badly executed it is almost ridiculous. First, the "graphic designers" were recruited from fiverr, a site where people will do stuff for you for five dollars. That is not where you are going to find skilled photo editors. Second, a single image is much more representative of the individual editor's standards and views than of the entire country or culture (keeping in mind that some countries on the project have many widely different cultures). Would asking someone specialized in beauty pageants, burlesque or high fashion be good representatives of what the real american beauty standards are?

I would like to see a collage of 15 or 20 images per country, done by different professionals, so that the similarities between them could stand out and different countries compared. Countries with many cultures would show greater variance between the images, more homogeneous places would have more similar results. Some places may consistently lighten skin, others may favour a "healthy" tan.