Mafalda Ferra Jacinto

Being able to accept failure and imperfection is crucial and during these past few weeks, on the make up breakdown classes, we converted those characteristics into something creative and fascinating. 

The first weeks were based on techniques, such as color correction, contouring and smokey eyes. Our first creative project was focused on the fashion mistake and fashion imperfection. On the fashion imperfection one I directed my research on the need of looking perfect, almost like a realistic painting through plastic surgery. For this look I painted my face with acrylic paint and used scoth tape all over the edges of my face in order to achieve the plastic surgeries’ features. On the fashion mistake look I focused on the consumerism we live in, so I recycled a Zara and Zadig & Voltaire tags, as a way of sustainability, and used rubber bands to secure them onto my face.  

I wanted my final look to be based on iconic and groundbreaking moments that happened on the fashion world since these occasions were once considered as mistakes or even something imperfect. I focused my research on three impactful fashion characteristics: runway shows, photography and campaigns. For the runway show, I used the Alexander McQueen’s AW 09’ Ready to Wear and the SS 98’ shows as a reference. On the photography department, Guy Bourdin was my choice as he was one of the biggest names on the fashion photography world due to the fact that he created narratives through photography being provocative, dramatic and ahead of his time. The campaign I chose was the Marc Jacobs’ 08’ campaign with Victoria Beckham. This campaign was shot by Juergen Teller and he converted  the model into a product, creating a statement. 

The final look became a narrative through groundbreaking moments in fashion. It shows what Marc Jacobs once hided, on the Marc Jacobs SS 08’ campaign. It shows the head inside its bag, the face of the product, the assumed ‘mistake’. I recreated the photo, hiding my body inside the bag, only showing my head and the shoes that were not hided on the campaign. My red lips are blurred and the shoe made my lipstick go all the way into the edge of my face creating the illusion as if I was kissing the high heel and it got dragged by someone else, taking away the accessory that is connected to the consumerism, the mistake. 

Failure will never be a dreadful thing as long as we are able to turn it into something better and that is not only what I did in my final look, but also what Alexander McQueen, Guy Bourdin and Juergen Teller did. In order to achieve success they failed, they understood humanity and everyone’s values, and turned their mistakes into graceful achievements. Overall I grew up as a person and have started to stare at challenges as something exciting instead of being afraid to fail.  As Alexander McQueen once said: ‘’You can only go forward by making mistakes’’.

During these past few weeks, on my make up breakdown classes we have been approaching the fashion mistake. Even though this theme was based on make up, it has a much bigger concept behind it. Making a mistake does not have no be a bad thing, in fact it is so importante to fail in order to succeed.

The action of making a mistake can take various perspectives on each and every individual. It can also depend on a more cultural side. In the USA, failing is a good thing in order to achieve success. On the other hand, in Japan, failing can ruin a person’s professional life and trying to ease the mistake can become a challenge. 

Diversity, nowadays is crucial in the world we live in right now. Everyone is different, and most iportantly, everyone is unique. Whether it can be through socio-economic status, religious beliefs, or even sexual orientation. No one should be seen as a failure, and failing should not be seen as a dreadful action. Making a mistake can makes us realise something we did not know, it can show our true feelings, it can wake us up. Furthermore, the most important feature is that failing can makes us more humble, educate us to value forgiveness and value ourselves, inform us more about the others and remind ourselves of our humanity! 

Onto the sustainability issue on make up, I am so much more aware of how this industry affects the planet. From now on I will only use cruelty-free and eco-friendly products. In this way I am trying to be more social responsible while being aware of my actions. In fact, a lot of things are changing on the beauty industry, for example: L’Oréal USA achieved carbon neutrality for its plants and switched the distribution centers to renewable energy in order to reduce the emissions and pollution.

This theme changed my way of working but most importantly, my self esteem and my social responsibility when it comes to my actions. I was constantly afraid of failing, of making a mistake and being made fun of. From now on I feel confident, I do not feel alone, I know myself better and look after the others. Realising that making mistakes is a good thing made me enjoy the work I am doing and build up the person I am today. As Paulo Coelho once said: “There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure.” Using failure as a benefit for my mental health made me feel better about myself and made me feel unbeatable, and that is exactly how everyone from every part of the world should feel about themselves.

References:

Sue Bryant (2019) ‘How different cultures deal with failure’, Country Navigator, 5 August. Available at: https://countrynavigator.com/blog/cultural-intelligence/failure-across-cultures/(Acessed: 25 April 2020)

Ekaterina Walter (2013) ’30 Powerful Quotes on Failure’, Forbes, 30 December. Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/ekaterinawalter/2013/12/30/30-powerful-quotes-on-failure/#617a0fbd24bd(Acessed: 25 April 2020)

April Long (2019) ‘How the Beauty Industry Is Becoming More Earth-Friendly’, The Oprah Magazine, 15 March. Available at: https://www.oprahmag.com/beauty/skin-makeup/a26826590/beauty-industry-eco-friendly/(Acessed: 25 April 2020)

Well-being is something that has been connected to us since the human existence and it relates to every single action that happens during our life. Whether it be school or even something as simple as daily routine actions such as cooking. 

Fashion in itself, such as the well-being, have an immense impact on the human’s life and it has been like that since the 19th century. As Coco Chanel once said: ‘’Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening’’, this represents how fashion is in everything and the way it can influence the way of thinking and well being. As a matter of fact the way we dress up can give us self-esteem, determine personalities. Clothes are an extension of ourselves, it can be consider as a second skin. However, this one you can personalize in your own way. Fashion can make everyone feel better, since it expresses identity statements. 

There are two types of well-being: Eudaimonic and Hedonic. The Eudaimonic type focuses on the experiences that the human have, such as self-actualization, esteem, love or belongings, safety and psychological. Whereas, the Hedonic type approaches the positive and negative effects in actions and the mental state of mind. Fashion plays a crucial role on both types of well-being, not just for what we wear, but the way we wear the clothes we choose. 

In a world where cruelness is a big part of it, it is important to stay true to ourselves and fashion is way to do that. Anxiety and depression are really common these days and trying to find something to give comfort in order to get away from negative thoughts can be complicated. Fashion can be a way out since it enhances the creativity and well-being. In spite of what society might think, fashion is not just clothes, is a state of mind and it is completely normal to feel comfort on simple items such as clothes or accessories. Accordingly to Bill Cunningham: ‘’Fashion is the armor to survive the reality of the everyday life’’.

Taking care of our mental health nowadays is crucial, every single action has an influence on our state of mind and having control over everything that is going on is impossible. Nonetheless, having control over one thing can create an enourmous impact on our state of mind. Therefore, fashion  enhances the creativity and as a consequence, the well-being.

References:

Harper’s bazaar staff (2020) ‘The 70 Greatest Fashion Quotes of All Time’ Harpers Bazaar. Available at: https://www.harpersbazaar.com/fashion/designers/a1576/50-famous-fashion-quotes/ (Acessed: 13/03/2020)