Name: Zoe Barrett-Kahn
Social Justice Group: 2022-2023, Women’s Role and Representation in the Media (print/ads/tv)
Date of Fieldwork: January 26, 2023
Name of Organization and person (people) with whom you met and their title(s):Milk Makeup
Type of Fieldwork: Interview
What I did and what I learned about my topic, activism, social justice work or civil and human rights work from this fieldwork?:
For a very long time, the makeup industry operated in a specific manner. Large posters showing thin women with flawless hair and faces and overtly feminine products promising to make you appear like them if you use their goods. Milk Makeup, however, is trying to change this. We spoke with Tyler Smart, the chief creative officer, and Kate Ingram, the director of creative operations. They explained to us how the community served as the foundation for their business and how they still uphold it as a core value. We also heard about the process of choosing models for product advertisements and how weight and race aren’t factors in the selection process. It was intriguing to learn about what happens behind the scenes of the advertisements that we see every day.
The way Tyler and Kate described the way they worked was honestly very refreshing. They described their models as “real people,” rather than the standard thin, white model shown so often in today’s society. They also described their products not as something to change your face structure or “fix” the way you look, but rather smaller things to enhance the face you were born with. It was nice to see a brand focused on the people and community rather than just profits. Overall, it was a really interesting experience and I learned a lot. It was great to see people actually being represented, people that look like the average citizen instead of someone who has devoted their entire career to looking perfect at all times. I think this interview gave our group a lot of insight into the behind-the-scenes aspect of the makeup industry and how Milk Makeup is working to change it.
