Welcome to Beauty Demands

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Beauty Demands is a network to share views on beauty norms and practices. The project is encouraging debate between the network members and beyond.

There are 2 projects running at the University of Birmingham, funded by AHRC and Leverhulme - Perfect Me and Beauty Demands.

This project considers changing attitudes to body image and the consequent changing uses of procedures which have traditionally been regarded as 'medical' e.g. the increase in surgical procedures connected to appearance and beauty. The most popular procedures in the UK are breast augmentation, eyelid surgery and face/neck lifts. These procedures are seen as increasingly 'normal', 'routine' and part of the 'beauty regimes' of 'ordinary women'.

beauty-idealWhat are the beauty norms which underlie this trend? The assumption of the network is that beauty image is becoming ever more demanding and defining of women, and increasingly men. The project will ask how this norm is constituted and how it impacts upon women. It will also ask whether the dominant beauty norm is increasingly a global beauty norm, and thus open to less cultural and sub-cultural resistance.

Would you like to join our network? Get in touch here.

Please note: the network exists to share views on beauty norms and practices. Beauty Demands is encouraging debate between the network members and beyond. Content should not be read as endorsement by project staff of views expressed here.

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