Contents
“You look great! Just from vacation? The most precious thing in such words is what is meant by them. Golden tan, radiant skin, clear eyes without signs of fatigue – for us, these are evidence of well-being, physical and mental. Why does just changing skin tone make us feel better?
When we meet a person who looks good, we are sure that he enjoys life. It seems to us that in his life there are not only busy weekdays, but also weekends, and with them – the sun, space, freedom, sensuality, serenity … The one whose cheeks are pale and dark circles under the eyes, we write down as workaholics. But the one who shows a tan too clearly and for too long is often suspicious.
“After a vacation at sea, I returned too tanned to go to work in this form,” says 36-year-old lawyer Larisa. “For a while I had to camouflage my tan with light powder, because in the courtroom it looks defiant!” The secret of a healthy and moderately tanned face is a real art. It requires from us subtlety and measure in every sense.
Opportunity to receive a compliment
“Let my face not reflect what is really going on in my soul,” says 41-year-old Valeria, “but if I hear several times a day that I look like I just came from a vacation, this is, after all, me really uplifting!”
“Sunburn is associated with warmth and light, with a comfortable living environment in which you can live, not survive,” explains Gestalt therapist Maria Andreeva. – Subjectively, we perceive it as a sign of well-being. And when we see a tanned face in the mirror, we feel that everything is in order with us and our life. And complimenting glowing skin fuels healthy narcissism: it’s like we’re being praised for the lifestyle we lead.”
In modern Western culture, positive emotions are valued and those associated with trouble, loneliness or illness are not “quoted”. Therefore, a face that demonstrates health and joy of life is a plus. Both in the public sphere and in private life. Sound sleep and well-chosen powder – sometimes nothing else is required to look good.
“Sometimes I notice how my mood changes as I put on makeup,” says Leila, 44. – With blush, the cheeks seem more plump, like a child’s, the face is not so tired. I apply a little corrective under my eyes to hide the blue, and gloss on my lips – and now I’m ready to face dull everyday life and grumbling clients.
According to Maria Andreeva, even when we achieve such an effect for our own sake, we still expect evaluation from the outside. “When we look good, we win people over,” says the therapist. “Their attention (even fleeting) helps us feel better, we worry less, forget about illnesses and hardships.”
Prosperity sign
Is a good complexion a ticket to professional and social life? This is often the case, believes Maria Andreeva. A tanned, well-groomed face is involuntarily perceived as a sign of health, youth, and success. After all, if a person knows how to take care of himself, is ready to make efforts and invest in order to look and feel better, then he has opportunities and life resources. Well-groomedness is perceived as the result of investment in one’s own health.
“By artificially creating a healthy complexion, say in a solarium or using self-tanning, we often unconsciously hope to increase our social status,” says Maria Andreeva. “Indeed, there can be a deceptive effect of excellent health and the illusion that we can afford what we really cannot afford.”
And yet each of us is responsible for how he looks.
“If a person demonstrates slovenliness in personal care, if he has a tired face, he is suspected of not taking care of himself, leading an unhealthy lifestyle, which means that a priori he is not very trustworthy,” says sociologist Jean-Francois Amadier . On the contrary, a well-groomed face indicates a healthy lifestyle and the ability to take care of oneself, control one’s life, which is especially valued in modern society.
We increasingly feel compelled to look good and feel guilty when we fail to do so.
Three years ago, 46-year-old Maria was asked by her head of department if she was all right: her pallor and colorless lips made him “unsettled.” Since then, Maria has been doing light makeup every day, “to look good.” At least in the eyes of your superiors, it is important to have a positive image.
There is nothing new in using makeup to “correct” your mood. What is new, perhaps, is that this game is aimed with equal success at oneself and at others.
“We feel that someone is looking at us, and this look is often “disciplined,” says culturologist Olga Weinstein in her book Dandy: Fashion, Literature, Lifestyle. “It can contain reproach, bewilderment, and even an accusation that our appearance does not correspond to the generally accepted norm, does not coincide with expectations. And this leads to the fact that we constantly feel like a passive object, and not a person, not a subject with their own rights and duties. We are becoming a patient anxiously waiting for test results.”
And increasingly we feel obliged to look good in the eyes of friends and family. And, accordingly, we feel guilty when we do not succeed.
The Tan Age Imperative
Each era has its own ideal of health and beauty. “At some point, a certain sign begins to dominate, and then for years it becomes synonymous with beauty and health,” explains culturologist Olga Weinstein.
“For our era, healthy skin, the absence of wrinkles on the face is important. A synonym for health is the elasticity of the body, its clear contours, and the image of brilliance: a luminous face, radiant skin, a gleam in the eyes. This metaphor for glowing energy comes from ancient cultural images, such as luminous hair that has magical powers. But why is this important now?
A new ideology emerged about 40 years ago in the United States and quickly spread throughout the world. Human health has become a symbol of beauty. Every member of society now had to take care of himself. Previously, the responsibility for the health of citizens lay with the state. Now one who was unable to keep fit was perceived as a “bad citizen”.
Behind this message, of course, were commercial interests. The media picked up on these ideas, indoctrinating their readers, viewers, and listeners with the cultural norms they must now conform to. But the idea of responsibility for one’s physical health was replaced by concern for a healthy appearance, external gloss.
And when the ideal of beauty, imposed by anyone, becomes part of the worldview, is included in the system of life values, a person’s mental balance is disturbed, harmony with himself and nature is lost. There is a need to change something in oneself – a figure, a face – so as to coincide with the ideal images from newspapers and magazines. You have to fuss a lot, and never start taking care of yourself.
I, but only better
Sunburn magically makes us immediately attractive. It is a sign of sexuality, helps to feel the body better, makes us more sensual.
“The tan in our culture is erotic, like everything golden,” deciphers psychoanalyst Rebecca Lustman. “As if a complexion illuminated by the sun implies an above-average libido, and this, after confirmation by the looks and words of others, gives freedom, confidence in the manner of holding on.”
Maria Andreeva also recalls the visual effect that a tan produces: it optically conceals volumes and camouflages skin defects.
With a tan, we feel less naked – it plays the role of an outfit, invisible clothes and improves relations with our own body. “In the summer, even in the most intense heat, I don’t wear tops with an open back or too short dresses,” says 33-year-old Anna. “But as soon as I go on vacation and get a tan, I stop being shy of the body, I feel more free and alive.”
The association of sunburn with beauty and health is a conditioned reflex from which it is difficult to get rid of. After all, a tan creates a feeling of “this is me, only in better shape.”
Makeup tricks
Olivier Echaudmaison, Artistic Director of Guerlain, recommends:
- Clear skin. For a healthy complexion, you need to regularly free the skin from dead cells. Only well-cleansed and well-moisturized skin can glow. A cleansing mousse or gel, a gentle exfoliation, a moisturizing mask… This is a necessary preliminary step.
- Apply a natural tone. Use a large brush and powder in a tan tone darker than your skin tone. Lightly brush over the entire face, highlighting the relief areas.
- Pay special attention to the mouth and cheekbones. A little gloss on the lips to freshen up the face, and blush on the cheekbones to bring out the relief. Nothing spoils the impression of a complexion like a dry-lipped mouth and a flat matte face.