BEAUTY'S PRICE TAG: From Exploitation to Self-Expression

 I do not conform to beauty standards. But what does that even mean? Where did these standards come from? Who is making the rules?

Sarah Baartman

Although I do not conform, the more I explore life, the more I understand that most things, if not all, began decades ago. Many people who scream originality and claim they started a certain trend are either terribly misinformed or happy to mask the truth in hopes of getting away with it.

My recent trip to the Tate Modern unveiled the exhibition CHRISTELLE OYIRI – In a Perpetual Remix, Where Is My Song? One part of the exhibition included images of Sarah Baartman, a South African woman brought to Europe in the early 19th century to take part in freak shows. People even had the option to pay for private shows in their homes, with the added option to touch her. The public obsession with Sarah centred on her large natural buttocks, which, during her time, was considered a desirable trait.

Sarah was paraded around and treated like an animal in a cage, even when outside of one. She had a traumatic life: losing both parents, having her partner murdered, and later experiencing the death of her child.

The exhibition also included video footage and images of women in various post-surgery transitions, interspersed with flashbacks of Black-owned strip clubs. As I stood watching the flashing lights, it dawned on me that the modern demand for cosmetic enhancement, particularly buttock enlargement, actually has roots going back centuries. Imagine a human being’s genital remains and pickled brain preserved in a museum in a foreign land for public viewing and study. Why? Because she had large buttocks. Scientists studied her, artists painted her, and she died at only twenty-six. The rest is history.

Even today, in 2025, women are still rushing to enlarge their buttocks, with some tragically not waking up from the surgery. And for what? Beauty standards.

The creative industries, including fashion and beauty, are made up of a multitude of opinions. I understand the desire to create something unique and present it to the world to gauge its reception before investing further. But to set a standard for the entire world and insist that everyone should live by it sounds like madness. In reality, it is also the perfect money-making strategy, which is the sole objective for many.

There was a time when my outward appearance matched the look that many people were paying for. It was also the unhealthiest I had ever felt, but I did what I needed to do to maintain that image purely for vanity. Gradually, as I matured spiritually and mentally, the desire to be healthy began to outweigh the desire to look a certain way. I wanted my inner well-being to shine through outwardly, so that I could feel good from the inside out.

It is wonderful to have guidance and inspiration in life, but when it comes to body types, I believe our choices should be shaped by a pursuit of health, not by the ingrained trauma passed down from our ancestors.

Written by: Marina Townsend