Since before the dawn of civilization, humanity has had a long held fascination with the usage of cosmetics. Hunters would paint their faces to appear more frightening; priests would adorn their faces with the juices of berries and crushed stones to honor their gods. To mark one’s face was not only show beauty, but to show others who they were- hunters, priests, elders. In ancient Mesopotamia, wealthy men and women smashed and crushed precious gems until they were nothing but fine powder. They would then apply them upon their mouths, riches a taste upon their lips. To see a person with glittering gems smeared across their face was to know they were of high status and of great wealth. Thus, it was not so much used to communicate who they were as defined by their functions as individuals, but rather their identity as constructed by material possession.
It was, of course, the ancient Egyptians who popularized lipstick, along with other forms of cosmetics such as eyeliner. However, rather than smash berries or gems and simply dab them onto the skin, they extracted red dye from seaweed, producing the carmine red color that modern lipstick is now famous for. The clergy, the elite and the royal all sought for various new and improved recipes to produce this lipstick; many went as far as to use dyes extracted from the bodies of cochineal insects. However, many of these attempts to show off both wealth and status ended in serious illness and death. But to them? It was worth it.
For a time, the correlation between lipstick and status eroded. Within Europe’s Dark Ages, lipstick was expressly forbidden by the Church, as it was a sign of frivolousness, pride and sexuality- especially among women. Red lipstick in particular was linked to devil-worship and cults. This was further cemented by the fact that the primary users of lipstick -and any other form of cosmetics- were prostitutes and theatre troupes, two marginalized groups who were at the very bottom of the social order. For a woman to paint her lips was for her to convey herself as a “painted lady”. For an actor to paint themselves in any way was to hide their true identity. Perhaps lipstick was seen as a sort of mask, a way of hiding the true self. A lie.
Lipstick gradually came back into fashion during the late 19th - early 20th century. During the 1930s young American girls would don lipstick as a form of rebellion against their parents. During the 1940s, red lipstick became intrinsic to a very different kind of fight- World War II. As women began to enter the workforce, their attire was decidedly not feminine; they wore overalls, they wore pants, they pulled their hair out of their faces and tied them down with bandanas. Red lipstick became a way to preserve their femininity; to portray themselves as both women and workers. Within the American Marine Corp’s Women Reserve, women used lipstick that matched their uniforms. This boosted their morale. This boosted their confidence. They became proud of their identities as Marines, as Americans, as women.
I learn this, I begin to think about my own relationship with lipstick. I started out with pale colors, then moved over to bright reds, then to dark crimsons, purples, and blacks. I think about how I clutch onto them as a painter would their brush. I wonder if we see ourselves as blank slates of paper, needing to be written, drawn on, in order to remind both others and ourselves that we exist-- and loudly.Makeup isn't a mask. It's a message. I don't particularly see that as a bad thing.
