Tag Archives: practices

A Critique of Today’s Modeling Industry and Representation

By Tanya Chen

Edited by Natalie Grace Sipula

[3.5 minute read]

As the proverb goes, “beauty lies in the eye of the beholder.” However, I’ve noticed that throughout American history, “the beholder” has always been the white majority. With past beliefs playing a powerful role in informing modern-day views and practices, America’s deep-rooted struggle with racism has had a detrimental effect on society’s idea of beauty. When I look to models and influencers who are regarded as “beautiful,” very rarely do I see any representation that looks like myself. In this article, I will discuss the origins of white beauty standards and the subsequent effects that they hold on modern-day beauty standards in the modeling industry.

As a field with the sole purpose of generating revenue for large corporations by selling new trends and products to consumers, the modeling industry has to maintain its exclusive and posh appearance through glamorous models in order to appeal to the American audience. The aesthetics and appearances of the models set unrealistic expectations for ordinary women who feel pressured to look a certain way. These models often have Eurocentric facial features and have light skin. The modeling industry is the most prominent example of how corporations have internalized white beauty standards to sell their products. 

Photo by Pete Pedroza on Unsplash

The modeling industry is known to pull inspiration from and appropriate Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) culture through music and visuals used for shows, hairstyles, and even skin tones. Cultural appropriation is when people from a dominant culture take aspects of the culture of a marginalized group that has been historically devalued, and divorce those aspects from their original meaning. They then use what they took from that culture for entertainment value (such as in fashion). For example, cornrows and dreadlocks have historically been challenging for Black women to wear confidently because of how society has negatively viewed them, but some white celebrities have been seen wearing them. This double standard and example of cultural appropriation show how the modeling industry views BIPOC people as unworthy of respect, despite capitalizing off of their culture. 

By utilizing other cultures to their own advantage, one would imagine that the industry would be willing to give proper representation to BIPOC models and their identities. However, the industry still refuses to hire more than a few BIPOC models per show. While the industry views BIPOC culture as something that they can appropriate, they don’t view these models as worthy enough to represent the idea of beauty and glamour that they perpetuate. When questioned about this, many of the shows’ executives claim that BIPOC models don’t fit their creative vision or intended audience. BIPOC models are told by the industry that their features and personas don’t fit what America considers beautiful. The modeling industry’s treatment towards these identities and appearances shows that they only recognize BIPOC culture when it is beneficial and there is money to be made off of it. 

Photo by Highlight ID on Unsplash

In today’s society, many other industries have the same problematic values, such as the film and music industry. They choose to capitalize off of BIPOC culture when it fits their capitalistic agenda. BIPOC cultures are more than just an aesthetic experience. This is a problem that has resulted in BIPOC people experiencing continued hardships. A failure to recognize this shows how the modeling industry is a flawed system that fails to serve as a proper example to women everywhere what the standard of beauty should be. 

Tanya is a rising senior studying Business Administration. She is from Southern California and enjoys taking advantage of the SoCal beaches. After teaching Mandarin to kids in underprivileged communities, she realized she had a strong passion for social work. On campus, she is involved with LA Community Impact and is a Marshall Research Assistant. In her free time she enjoys watching film analysis videos, designing graphics, and playing with her dog, Mochi.

SUSTAINABILITIPS: How to Incorporate Environmental Sustainability into Your Day

By Josie Macdonald

Edited by Natalie Grace Sipula

[3.5 minute read]

One trend that has been gaining traction lately is the push towards integrating environmental sustainability into our everyday lives. The issue with trends, however, is that they always fizzle out. Changing small practices in our everyday lives to make them more sustainable is easy and can have long lasting impacts on future generations. As humans, we have created a lot of great technologies that make our lives more efficient. The tradeoff has been the negative impact they are having on the environment. Sustainability involves using practices in our everyday lives that reduce waste, reverse the impacts of climate change, and allow us to support the continual health of the population. Living sustainably is too important to just be a trend! So, what can we do as a generation to make sure sustainability stays relevant?

Here is an açai bowl I had! It was delicious, nutritious, and completely plant based. It even had protein because of the peanut butter!
  • Eat less meat! Animal agriculture is unhealthy for the environment because of the pollutants that are released by factory farms. In fact, factory farming is one of the leading contributors to greenhouse gas emissions. Additionally, it is not very sustainable. Chickens, pigs, cows, and most of the other animals we eat are herbivorous, so they don’t eat any animals. Thus, eating animals is like eating second-hand plant nutrients. Also, they eat much more than humans. If we eat less animals, factory farms will breed less animals because it is not cost-beneficial for them, and the crops used to feed animals could directly feed humans (and since we eat less, it would feed many more of us)! As if sustainability and was not a good enough reason to eat less meat, the impact on our health is another great benefit. One documentary that I watched on Netflix called The Game Changers explained the numerous health benefits of a plant-based diet. Even if you don’t want to give meat up completely, try starting with Meatless Mondays! Starting a plant-based diet can seem very intimidating and limiting at first, but in my experience, it can also create opportunities to try new foods!
Photo by Stijn te Strake on Unsplash

  • Use less water! One thing we have probably all heard is to remember to turn off the water when we brush our teeth, and that is very important. The EPA estimates that leaving the water running while we brush our teeth wastes an average of 4 gallons per brush. If you brush your teeth twice a day, that is 2920 gallons (11054 liters) per year! Another simple way we can save water is by buying low-flow shower heads. They are usually inexpensive, and there are a wide variety of options to choose from. Another benefit for you is that you will save more money on your water bill each month!

  • Compost! This is one of the most underrated practices in our world today. So what exactly is composting? Compost is essentially the controlled decomposition of biodegradable materials, including but not limited to: leftover food, eggshells, paper waste, and some plastics. Instead of throwing these items in the garbage, we can compost them! Many people can create a compost bin in their backyards, but if you don’t have a backyard, you can create an indoor compost bin. Composting can enrich the soil with nutrients, which creates healthier plants for us to eat because it reduces soil erosion and runoff. Composting is not only sustainable, but it is also regenerative. While it is important to live sustainably, it is even better to be able to live regeneratively. This means that we are living sustainably by not depleting Earth’s resources, but also giving back by creating more resources for the Earth. Composted matter brings a lot of organic matter into the soil, allowing the soil to store more water, sequester (or extract) carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere, and give plants more nutrients. By diverting compostable waste from landfills, you will help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and it will reduce your carbon footprint!
Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash
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Return to Practice

By Eileen Kim

Edited by Natalie Grace Sipula

[3 minute read]

When I was younger, I understood the concept of practice in the context of the Merriam Webster Dictionary definition: “to perform or work at repeatedly so as to become proficient”. As a child who participated in many sports and played multiple musical instruments, practice referred to the events I worked on to improve my technical skills. At practice, I would learn how to do better through acts of repetition and intentional change. 

Eventually, I chose to centralize my practice towards my passion for dance. With my goal of becoming a professional ballet dancer, practice took on a whole new layer of meaning. I worked daily and repeatedly at a set of physical movements in ballet to improve and refine my technique. This repetition led to growth and mastery within ballet and my practice became understood as a necessary means that would result in self-improvement.

Photo by Nihal Demirci on Unsplash

As I got older, my conception of practice began to evolve. My practice became grounded in the habitual sense of coming back to something. There was still a level of mastery that I was after, but it was more so realized as a continuous and infinite pattern that I felt compelled to return to. Year after year and almost every day, I would start again at the ballet barre where I would repeat the same series of physical movements. But the sameness of this repetition never bored me, because everyday was different and I was different everyday. Every day brought its own joys and challenges, and everyday I came back with 24 more hours of lived experience. Everything surrounding me was in a constant state of change and the stability of my daily practice became like a refuge for me, one that I could always return to and find comfort in.

As I reflect on how I approach my practice in the present, I have found that in many ways, practice is similar to a routine. The habitual nature of both concepts are the same, but practice puts an intentionality to the repetition and implies a sense of growth. The contents of our daily routines can be the same as our daily practices, but approaching our daily routines as daily practices can drastically reframe how we approach our lives. For me, practice no longer only refers to the physical practice I put into my dancing body. My daily practices encompass how I approach my life, what I eat, what time I go to sleep, how I take care of my body, and how I take care of my mind.

Continue reading Return to Practice