Goal: To change lenses - Through design, I would like to visualize the difference in how one see’s their physical identity compared to how others see it in an attempt to build a more genuine and understanding relationship with oneself.

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Design Means: Photography, Photography Book

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Proposal: The act of applying makeup is more than just a daily routine for many women. It’s deeply intertwined with one’s sense of herself, as well as her position in society. Women nowadays wear makeup for many reasons; to feel empowered, to conceal insecurities, for artistic expression etc. Studies show makeup can increase a woman's likability, making her seem more competent and trustworthy to others. Certain makeup can boost one’s confidence therefore impacting her overall performance in other tasks throughout the day (Gilmore-Montero). However, makeup can also negatively affect how a woman sees herself as well as others.

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The act of doing makeup requires women to examine their appearance from an extremely critical perspective. The cosmetic industry as well as new technology such as beauty filters, portrays unreachable expectations of beauty that many women strive to reach. This leads to constant comparisons to ideal images of women, as well as insecurities towards our physical features. The untouched face becomes insufficient whereas the overly done face can seem narcissistic. Women have been taught to believe that their beauty matters greatly in their value as a person. The relationship women have with makeup is complex yet very important in shaping one’s identity. Often, so much time and money goes into altering one’s appearance to portray an ideal self to others. However, there is a huge gap in how others see ourselves to how we do that leads to a misrepresentation of identity.

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One’s judgment of themselves is based on their knowledge of their own emotions, intentions, and sensations. Whereas, one’s judgement of others is based on external observations, mainly by what can be seen through physical appearance and actions. One cannot fully grasp the full information of emotions and intentions that are running through the other’s head. Alternatively, one cannot see themselves in a way that separates their own inner thoughts from their outer appearance. Subconsciously, we have biases that distort our perception towards both ourselves and others that may originate from societal stereotypes or life experiences (Pronin). When doing our own makeup, we may appreciate our own reflection, however we are not the main viewer of our face. The people we encounter are the ones devoting the majority of their visual attention to our crafted face.  If we continue to use makeup to project our best versions of ourselves to others, it would be beneficial to know how others see us without biases to communicate our intended message.

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Timeline:

 

Sept. 2nd-16th: Idea development, mind-mapping, narrowing down ideas

 

Sept. 16th-23rd: Choose one direction, begin early research on identity, How We Perceive Ourselves; Why We Wear Makeup

 

Sept. 23rd-30th: Continue research, dive further into topics, History of Makeup, Miss Representation, Beauty Filters, Portrait Photography

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Sept.30th-Oct.7th: Further research on Diane Arbus, Cindy Sherman,The Illustionist, Connie Fisher on Makeup, (seperate post) interview others about personal experiences. Begin considering specifics for design project.

 

Oct. 7th-Oct.14th: Midterm, start planning out and sketching for design project, take photos for journal idea, organize research binder, Framing The Self, Exhibition Design, Sartre Updated Outline

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Oct. 14th-28th: Cont. taking photos and experimenting with subjects to understand design circumstances, create mood board, further sketches, further research on 'self', digital image altering, and race related to identity

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Oct.28th-Nov.4th: Shoot and edit photographs for project, begin sketching photography book layout, thumbnail sketch entire process book design, research Face Inversion, the Ego, and the Role of Social Media on body image

 

Nov. 4th-11th: Layout first half of process book, Write out and begin digitally designing photography book layout

 

Nov.11th-18th: Document any further research, revise design of blog, input all project based work onto thesis project page, complete first draft layout of photography book, complete full first draft layout of the process book.

 

Nov. 18th-Dec.2nd: Complete final design project, add process work to the blog ,concrete revision to process book, full layout should be in pdf format in InDesign

 

Dec. 2nd- Dec.9th: Completed book and blog

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Research Plan:

 

Focus: Visual Identity

• The way we present ourselves to others

• The use of makeup and beauty/grooming products to enhance our identity

• Comparing the ways we alter our physical appearance both in person and through beauty filters/photo editing apps.

• What features do we try to enhance and conceal?

• Portrait photography

 

Research topics:

• How we interact with our reflection

• Philosophical theory on the self/self awareness/self and body

• Body image

• Beauty standards

• Cultural differences

• Representation

• Photography

 

Questions To Answer Through Research:

1. What defines the self?

2. Why do we see ourselves differently? - What biases do we have about ourselves?

3. Why and when do we use beauty filters?

4. How does our audience affect our choice in makeup/filters?

5. Is this a similar experience across cultures? - How does it differ?

6. How would this knowledge change our beauty rituals?

7. How would it affect our overall relationship with ourselves?

8. What does portrait photography look like? How do artists incorporate themes of identity and feminism into their work?

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Forms of Research: Bibliography

• Articles

• Documentaries 

• Interviews

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Mind Map:​

 

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