Print Contemporary Practice
Emma Reynolds
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This artist practice casts a critical lens over the YouTube beauty guru phenomenon by posing as one themselves. This phenomenon is driven by human consumption, particularly in the beauty industry, which has faced a huge upsurge in recent years. They came to this conceptual point after looking into singular consumer objects and their significance in their respective industries. Eyeshadow palettes are consistently hyped to be the most irresistible and lucrative cosmetic purchase, a beautiful object of desire that one must acquire. It is a concept rooted in consumer culture and the cosmetics industry, but it has evolved into a study of female rituals and self-perception, surveilled through YouTube. Their intent was to take the idea of a ‘beauty guru’ and turn it into a character with which they could explore the relationship between the makeup and the influencer, and in turn, the influencer and the viewer. What is visible to the viewer is a mix of what’s shown and what’s hidden. They can reinvent themselves on the terms of what they want to show you. It is a new female stereotype portrayed through a theatrical, comedic character.