'Escape the corset': South Korean women rebel against strict beauty standards

[dreamer-easy.livejournal.com]

For more than a decade, starting when she was 12, Cha would meticulously apply cosmetics, chasing the narrow definition of beauty that dominates South Korean society. In middle school, she applied foundation to lighten her skin tone, avoiding teachers who would punish her for violating school rules.

She watched YouTube make-up tutorials to hone her skills and by her early 20s would spend as much as 100,000 won (£70) a month on cosmetics. But amid a wider feminist awakening in South Korea, Cha has chosen to ditch her makeup, lipstick and dyed blonde hair.

“I felt as if I had been born again,” Cha said. “There’s only so much mental energy a person has each day, and I used to spend so much of it worrying about being ‘pretty’. Now I use that time to read books and exercise.”

Cha is part of a growing movement in South Korea fighting against unrealistic beauty standards that call for women to spend hours applying makeup and perform skincare regimes that involve 10 steps or more at each end of the day. Among their complaints is that women must wake up two hours before work to ensure perfect makeup, meticulously removing dead skin with peeling gel and steam towels before beginning their regimen.

Women sick of the laborious routine have started to post videos on social media of destroyed piles of cosmetics with the catch-cry “escape the corset”, likening makeup to the garments that were part of daily women’s garments for years and worked to constrain bodies into a uniform shape.

The trend is part of a larger push against the country’s patriarchal society that has seen record numbers of women take to the streets to demand greater equality and fight against issues such as illegal filming and sexual assault.

The movement is an interesting turn in South Korea, a nation that actively promotes its prowess in cosmetic surgery – as much as a third of young women have gone under the knife – and whose cosmetic brands are coveted around the world with an industry worth about $12.5bn (£9.7bn), according to Euromonitor.

‘They can’t have any power over me’

Cha now spends about 4,000 won (£2.75) a month at most on moisturiser and lip balm, and has started a YouTube channel to raise awareness of feminism, using the same platform that once taught her makeup techniques.

South Korea’s exacting beauty standards are the result of several factors that have combined to encourage women to aim for pale skin, big eyes, a high nose bridge, skinny legs, cherry-like lips, a small face and a nine-to-one body ratio, where the body is nine times as long as the face. While every country has its own sense of what is ideal, South Korea’s strong conformist streak has led to millions striving to achieve the same look.

But over the past few months, the tide has started to turn, with thousands of posts on social media showing women smashing their cosmetics as a way of rejecting mainstream ideas of beauty. One theme running through the movement is the idea of a beauty regimen as a form of labour, one that only women are expected to perform and for which they are in no way compensated.

In one video two women dump eye shadow, foundation, blush and nail polish onto a white sheet, creating a Jackson Pollock-style canvas. “I was embarrassed to go outside without this in the past,” one of the women says. “They can’t have any power over me when it’s so easy to break them.”

In another post on Twitter one woman remarks: “I can’t believe I wore this on my face.”

While there are currently no statistics showing a drop in cosmetic sales, anecdotal evidence suggests the movement is hitting bottom lines. An anonymous official at a top South Korean cosmetics retailer was anxious about the new trend and planned to focus on increasing sales to men, according to local media. Another makeup company employee said firms were afraid to even admit the movement could be affecting them.

Rejecting makeup is only part of the campaign against prevailing beauty standards. A Korean news anchor at one of the country’s main televisions stations sparked a flurry of debate in May when she became the first woman to wear glasses on air.

Separately, Jiwon Park started an Instagram account last year to promote body positivity and fight back against the narrow definition of beauty in South Korea.

“The movement doesn’t only aim to challenge the sexual objectification of women, but also change the status of women as subordinate to men,” said Lee Na-Young, a women’s studies professor at Chung-Ang University in Seoul. “As a result, we’re not only seeing a change in makeup and cosmetics but also the way women dress.”

“These women are experiencing liberation, and once they experience that, there’s no going back.”

Source: The Guardian

Comments

[myrrhcat.livejournal.com]

hell yeah i am so into this. the increasing popularity of the "korean skincare regimen" in the west kinda worries me too, it's something coming from a culture that forces women to spend so much time and money on appearance and we're adopting it too? i like having soft skin, but i can do that in a lot less than ten steps

also it's absolutely insane that no woman (or i'm guessing no female new anchor) wore glasses on air until this may WTF

[senshicalico.livejournal.com]

yeah it's super interesting to see western women here in America (of all races, even) really getting into the South Korean beauty products while Korean women themselves are smashing shit in the streets. The dissonance is astounding at times. Even if the American women are vaguely aware of it, they brush it off as like "more for me then!" (???? cause companies only make a certain amount? lol.)

[existingisfunny.livejournal.com]

i don't think western/american women rly understand the scope. because a lot of us, if you weren't paying attention to any korean pop culture, only found korean skincare and beauty products in maybe the last 3 years in the mainstream, it's still relatively new to us and the hot thing. meanwhile, actual korean women that have been around these products their whole lives have felt this pressure for longer and harder

i think the factor that korean women have to strive to look like the one ideal korean woman, meanwhile it's impossible for us american women to look the same so there are a dozen kind of ideals, that also holds a lot of unrelatable pressure

so i can see why americans wouldn't be reacting the same way

[senshicalico.livejournal.com]

oh definitely. but I also know a lot of self-centered americans who are seemingly incapable of gaf about anyone else as long as they "get theirs" :\ In this case, beauty products.

[ah0000.livejournal.com]

While I'm like YES this is great, I also genuinely love beauty. It is probably something my mind has been conditioned to love over the years, but there is nothing I find more satisfying than my skincare routine. I do wish I could get out of wearing makeup bc I'm uncomfortable going out without it most days but I also love when new makeup color products come out. I wait for the day I can feel comfortable going out without foundation.

[premonitioner.livejournal.com]

dunno why that replied to your comment, sorry!

[jasmineakaiumi.livejournal.com]

since I moved out of korea I've found myself wearing less and less makeup on a daily basis when going to work (tinted sunscreen, brows, mascara, lips, and of course highlight haha), whereas when I lived in Korea I felt the need to wear a full face, otherwise I was told I looked tired or asked if something was wrong.

having said that I LOVE doing makeup, and a lot of my free time is dedicated to doing a lot of elaborate looks because it's just so cathartic to me. skincare is the same, i really enjoy putting on an audiobook and having a quiet 20mins to settle down and get my mind ready for bed at the end of the day.

[chibi-rei.livejournal.com]

Same! When I started my current job after coming back from Korea this year I started out wearing makeup which was usually bb/cc cream, mascara, and eyebrow tint. I really don't bother anymore unless I feel like it and no one says anything -- not like they would have in Korea. I like make-up and beauty items, but I like not feeling like I have to wear them.

[premonitioner.livejournal.com]

I feel this. When I was living in Korea 4 years ago, I was so stressed and mentally unwell that I just stopped caring about makeup and my hair looking perfect. I too hadn't gone out in public without makeup and contacts since I started wearing them until that point. I like wearing makeup, but if I'm just going to the convenience store I'll not bother with anything but suncream anymore.

the glasses thing is such bullshit. however, I've noticed I'm the only female teacher at my school in Japan who regularly wears glasses during teaching hours. And I get told by my students they prefer me with contact lenses and the heavier makeup I've worn during school events and I'm like 'cool story'. I'd much rather be comfortable at work than wake up 30 minutes earlier.

[nekokonneko.livejournal.com]

a female anchor wearing glasses was notable?? and apparently, some cinemas don't allow female staff to wear glasses while at work?? that's utterly, utterly mad. like, there's no easy place to be a woman, but south korea is definitely near the bottom of the curve.

[scionofawhisper.livejournal.com]

It is... on gender equality rankings of countries, Korea always ranks like 100+

[senshicalico.livejournal.com]

Shit like this makes me so glad I've never worn makeup. The money I've saved.. the extra sleep I've gotten... pissing off the patriarchy... my eternal trifecta.

[existingisfunny.livejournal.com]

this is really exciting!

i didn't start wearing makeup until i had my first job at 18 because my family didn't have money for extra stuff like that and i'd rather have scrapped my change for concerts. but once i started wearing makeup it was still maybe $100 spent per year? i have hooded eyes so eyeshadow looks felt pointless and i never got into the whole "beat face" thing

because i never wore makeup regularly, when i do it kinda just feels like having dirt on my face. i dislike the weight. so i tend to only use a lip tint/balm and moisturizer brightens my face

crazy to see an anchorwoman wearing glasses was that big of a deal but it seems a lot of korean people take glasses as a fashion statement for particular outfits and not an actual thing people need to have to see...

the skincare regimen is excessive at points but i can't deny the relief of exfoliation. there is a line between feeling clean and spending so much of your youth applying creams to remain looking youthful because looking your age is of course terrible

[dior-chic.livejournal.com]

I support this. Makeup is a big part of my life and my career, and a big part is because I love the creativity behind it. There’s so much you can do with it! So when it’s restrained about how you should wear it and it can be a factor in how it elevates your place in society and determines your worth, fuck that. I hate when people say ‘do this to enhance your feature’ And scoff at people for doing something with their makeup. It’s about enjoying your creative outlet and using yourself as a canvas, if I viewed it as wearing to just to make men happy I’d be very frustrated. And this line is so important to me:
‘one that only women are expected to perform and for which they are in no way compensated.’

I see this literally everyday in so many parts of life for women. We do what the patriarchy tells us to do not because it will actually better our lives but more so to keep us in line. That is incredibly depressing. The last line about the liberation is here and it’s not going away is so powerful ❤️

[jasmineakaiumi.livejournal.com]

this!! I do have my makeup "crutches" (I won't leave the house without my brows at least a little done), but makeup in general is such a huge creative outlet for me that i could never give it up!

[lightframes.livejournal.com]

I hope we can get to a point where women don't feel like they have to wear makeup. My workplace is about 90% women so I don't feel the same pressure and most of us wear little or no makeup daily. Everyone should have that freedom!

Also my eyes got really sensitive to my contacts for like a year, so I had to wear glasses until I was able to switch to a different kind of contacts. I guess I wouldn't have been able to work for a year???

[scionofawhisper.livejournal.com]

2 hours everyday, holy crap. I spend maybe at most 10 minutes, lmao. If I have trouble getting out of bed I'll skip breakfast to put on make-up since that is enough time. I mean it's great to have nice skin, but at the expense of what... all your mental energy, spending money, you put into make-up and looking good for other people, for men to objectify you... doesn't seem worth it, unless perhaps you're an entertainer.

I mean Kpop is like the best promoter of these standards too, since kpop idols go even further in their pursuit of beauty (so much plastic surgery on their face, getting leg muscles removed, etc) and hold up the standards of what is pretty. Little girls look up to them and want to be them, they appear in the ads for make-up... It makes sense for them to put more effort into their looks since that is part of their job, but it doesn't stop everyone from wanting to be them, from copying them (and clearly there is a huge problem).

The spread of kpop scares me just a bit because of that - spreading the ridiculous standard of beauty that Korea has, and the little box that women must be in - cute but sexy, and without any real power so they don't scare their male fans away.

[mmmalvina.livejournal.com]

Abandoning makeup altogether was one of the most liberating decisions I’ve made, it’s such a confidence booster. That being said, now I regard makeup as some alien substance I don’t want to touch, yet women in my industry have to wear some in order to look ~professional :(

[honeebs.livejournal.com]

Good for them. The rest well that has a lot to do with finding out who you are and living your truth. Korea as a whole has been really working hard on living their truth (lgqtb+/single for life/no babies/political views/metoo/holding corp accountable for actions (which is what i think the root of this standard)) I support them.
They have a centuries old fight on their hands.

But we also have a waste problem--> If y'all want to escape the corset send me your stuff, I'll pay for shipping.
Stay strong ladies and gents!
Damn the man!

[yxerin.livejournal.com]

this is so satisfying to hear. it seems like the choice feminist "makeup-as-empowerment"-rhetoric hasn't taken hold in sk the way it has in the west

[modestgoddess79.livejournal.com]

“the idea of a beauty regimen as a form of labour, one that only women are expected to perform and for which they are in no way compensated.“

I feel this so much. Women in the west are also expected to do so much unpaid labor. While the beauty standards are more diverse, women are still expected to put more effort into their grooming than men are. Women in heterosexual relationships also do most of the errands, cooking, cleaning, child care and emotional labor even when they both work. My friend is married with no kids and she makes her husband’s doctor appointments!

[revertigo.livejournal.com]

I was watching While You Were Sleeping and there was a random, obvious marketing tie-in scene where Suzy was promoting some brands makeup and they had her character say, “why did I ever think I could leave the house without makeup?” The patriarchy truly never sleeps. They’re not even being coy with trying to sell makeup to women as it being a “choice” and just straight up telling women you shouldn’t leave the house without.

[mallmouse.livejournal.com]

Finally.