In her book Flawless. Lessons in Looks and Culture from the K-Beauty Capital, Elise Hu shows us the often unseen face of South Korea's booming industry.
I've seen the future, and it's poreless.
International correspondant and first-ever Korea and Japan bureau chief for the American broadcaster NPR, moves from Washington D.C. to Seoul, South Korea, for an unimaginable adventure and a deep dive into how aesthetic permeates our modern lives. Elise Hu spent four years, from 2015 to 2018 analyzing the bewilderment of the K-beauty world.
I remember not long ago the boom in K-beauty products in the U.S. The Korean cultural wave, Hallyu, was on the rise. From streamign series, to K-pop, to the ten step skincare routines. Many people were clueless about what they were actually doing. Like Elise Hu puts it, "what kind of relationship with ourselves -and one another-are we ultimately pursuing?".
If you are walking the streets of Seoul with medical tape, bandages or silicone nose covers, you are no stranger to the scene of the Asian capital. Imagine how Elise, being pregnant at the time, found herself a target for all kinds of procedures and products that constantly hammer Korean women today. South Korea is described on her account as an extremely patriarchal society where things such as physical appearance entering a woman's résumé to find a job, are the norm.
According to a 2018 ISAPS survey, South Korea boasts the most cosmetic surgeons per capita on Earth. "The state even supported the logic of bodily change as good citizenship by providing temporary tax breaks that could go to cosmetic surgery".
The beauty industry is for Korea today what the manufacturing and shipbuilding industries once were, the most profitable export and now a foundational mark. For example, several green tea plantations found in the island of Jeju are dedicated not to drinking but skincare. The standard set by its citizens, ensures also that companies go above and beyond to satisfy the demanding and knowledgeable consumers.
Some particular products and procedures mentioned in the book are brightening products, vagina steamign and full body scrubs that are far from relaxing (see the Conan O'Brien episode on one of these spas).
With the help of government subsidies, Korean brands were able to export their products and expand their empire, aided by the expansion of Hallyu in digital media as well. In 2020, South Korea is the third largest cosmetics exporter in the world.
However, some tides are turning in the East and new feminist movements (such as "Escape the Corset") that seek to fight the beauty norms imposed by Korean society, are gaining traction.
As for the author, she has regained awareness on how society imposes on us never ending expectations, many times, with promises of a brighter future, but misses the mark on what is truly worthy.
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