NYFW’s “The New Standards of Beauty” Panel Highlights the New Form of Beauty: Seeing People for Who They Are

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After attending The New Standards of Beauty panel at NYFW Spring 2022 on Feb. 12, it was more evident how social media will forever be ingrained into our lives, and there is no moving backwards from it. Moderated by Jae Joseph, a cultural producer and entrepreneur, The New Standards of Beauty panel explores beauty in cultural, historical, and social contexts in modern day. Panelists include Christelle de Castro, Patrick Starrr, Drew Elliot, and Aweng Chuol. 

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Christelle de Castro is a well-known photographer, creative director, and filmmaker in New York City. Her images embody her love for fashion, artists, and musicians. De Castro does a lot of work involving editorial and commercial work. Some of her clients are Opening Ceremony, Nike, and Visionaire. Her work has also been published in V Magazine and Wonderland to name a few.  

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Patrick Starrr is a Filipino-American beauty vlogger and makeup artist. He is also the founder of One/Size cosmetics. The beauty brand matches your skin tone to a shade so you can find what best suits you without any added stress. Starrr has looked to makeup as his outlet towards self-discovery, and wants people to feel supported in the same way he did. His brand emphasizes love and inclusivity through the pink and red packaging. 

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Drew Elliot is the Global Creative Director for MAC Cosmetics and Creative Consultant on America’s Next Top Model. Prior to his job in the beauty industry, he was the Chief Creative Officer at Paper Magazine. 

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Aweng Chuol, the eldest of 11 other siblings, and a model from Kenya. She moved to Australia when she was only seven years old. While working at a McDonald’s in Sydney, an agent from Chadwick Models encouraged her to work with them. She signed with Chadwick Models and began her career modeling at age 18.

Each of these individuals contributed their thoughtful perspectives on how the industry has become what it is and how their own personal experiences have shaped who they are.

“I think working at MAC Cosmetics has made me really realize, one of our brand pillars, is individuality. When you allow people to be themselves they’re gorgeous.” Elliot says.

Social media sets these standards to look or act a certain way. When people are put into that realm they may lose a sense of self. When the media reassures people to be themselves, it is like a sigh of relief that there are no expectations they have to live up to. The media impacts our lives so much even if you do not realize it. It shapes a lot of our perspective and normalizes concepts that we originally may have never even thought of to begin with.

“I feel like there’s been space given, especially for models of color, me being one of them, LGBT, me being one of them.” Aweng says. “I never saw myself when I was a kid, I never saw myself anywhere, and now I can say I can be somewhere. It’s refreshing.” 

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While the media sets standards, it is also trying to accept other forms of beauty and opening the space, which Aweng is referring to, to other minorities. The fashion and beauty industry is growing, there is always more work to be done, but for now, there are people that have been accepted into the industry no matter if they fit the “standards” or not. 

“We personify beauty, it has transcended through social media and we are able to see people for who they are. I think personifying beauty has been the new standard for the way we look at things.” Starrr says.

Starrr emphasizes how brands, businesses, influencers, and the public use social media to turn the tables and further expand upon new meanings of beauty. There is beyond what we see at face value.

“Apps and beauty companies can do more advocacy about mental, spiritual, and emotional health so we can always tell people this is all fun and stuff and this is all glam and amazing, but also are you taking care of yourself inside.” De Castro says. 

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While we can get caught up in the new forms of beauty and art being broadcasted everywhere, there is also another thing we need to take care of as human beings, and that is our mental health. With so much content being thrown in our faces on the daily, we have to keep in mind that there is more to life than what is being shown on a screen. It is art, it is beautiful, but it is also real people going through their own personal situations at the moment.

It is important to acknowledge art for what it is, but also to acknowledge the person behind the camera and their own individuality and uniqueness. We all are adapting to a new world of inclusivity. While there is more work to be done, the industry realizes the pain others have endured while beauty expectations were trying to be met. We are looking towards a present and future of seeing people for who they are more.