00:10I'm Barbie Ferreira and I'm gonna teach you how to behave, which is sort of a
00:15joke in itself, but. I'm the least behaved woman in New York State. I would
00:20say Tri-State, but Jersey is a whole nother ballgame. Trust, I live there.
00:31Since I started modeling, I've spent quite a bit of my life in a makeup chair, transforming
00:37myself into whatever someone else's perception of what I'm supposed to be that day is. Powder,
00:45contour, moisturize, highlight, conceal, accentuate. Why are women expected to do all of this?
00:55Traditionally, makeup was thought of as a way to help women snag a husband, but is it
01:00really that simple anymore? So I'm on my way to meet some people who think about makeup
01:08in a different way, as a tool for art, performance, and to realize their true authentic selves.
01:14I know that I like makeup and a lot of people do, and it's their way of expressing themselves,
01:18but does that make us bad feminists? First up, synchronized swimmers.
01:33On the surface, these ladies are like the ultimate in old-fashioned femininity. I mean,
01:38they wear a full face of makeup underwater. They are smiling at all times, even underwater. To me,
01:46that makes a sport seem harder, not easier than other sports. It feels like these swimmers get a
01:51bad rap for appearing so feminine, when the reality is, those were some bad ass bitches.
01:57So, a lot of sports don't wear makeup, or it's not like traditional to wear makeup, so why is it
02:03that semi-nice swimming, especially when it's a water sport, why do you guys wear makeup?
02:07Part of our score is an artistic score. We have to wear makeup so that the judges can see our
02:12expression.
02:13Just like actors on a stage, the audience needs to see their expression. Similarly, in synchro,
02:18you need to have a judge be able to read what your expression is.
02:20Do you consider synchronized swimming feminist?
02:23I consider everything I do feminist, because I think everything that I do advances what the
02:28opinion of women should be. However, I love participating in synchronized swimming,
02:32because anyone can do it.
02:36It's funny how makeup can alter not just your appearance, but also people's perception of you.
02:43Is it possible to feel the need to wear makeup and still be feminist?
02:47To get right to the source, I'm going to do what every millennial does, or Gen Z.
02:51I'm going to go to the internet.
02:53So I asked Twitter, general question, do you wear makeup? Why or why not? How is it empowering
02:59or disempowering to you personally? Because I feel like everyone has their own personal
03:03paths on makeup. So I'm going to let this fester in here, and now I'm going to come back to
03:11it.
03:12So now we're going to meet Goldie Peacock. So Goldie is a performance artist who performs
03:17in drag as a drag king. They are going to teach me exactly what goes into that. Goldie
03:23was assigned female at birth, and now they identify as non-binary. As a good host does,
03:28I'm going to get a little makeover. Hello! How are you?
03:33I'm great. How are you?
03:35I'm great.
03:36So, what is a drag king?
03:38So a drag king is an entertainer who assumes a theatrical guise of maleness in and for
03:44performance.
03:48So personally, what does portraying masculinity in your art mean to you?
03:53When I'm in drag, I feel very powerful and like I own everything. My shoulders are squared
04:01and I'm ready to take on the world.
04:09We're going to contour your cheekbones. We could possibly do stubble. I also have some
04:15fake mustaches that we could paste on that are really extreme.
04:19One of those like handlebar mustaches.
04:20I have one.
04:21I wanted to stop that. I wanted to stop it.
04:25I wanted to stop it.
04:37I'm every guy you ever dated.
04:39Yeah.
04:41Okay.
04:42Let's do it.
04:44Oh!
04:46Oh my god. I look like I play the bass in a band.
04:50Every band ever.
04:52Every band.
04:53So earlier today, I actually asked people just a general question. Do you wear makeup?
04:58Why or why not? How is it empowering or disempowering to you personally?
05:02So sad meme boy, I rarely wear makeup because it makes me anxious about my appearance when
05:07it doesn't work out the way I want it to. I feel better not wearing it, but I don't feel
05:10disempowered one way or another.
05:13Interesting. This is an example of how a culture of makeup connoisseurs who say that makeup needs
05:20to be this particular way, and then people feel anxious if they can't measure up to that standard.
05:24In reality, makeup is just paint on your literal face.
05:27Yes!
05:28Makeup is just paint on the face. That's it.
05:37People think that makeup is just to attract suitors, but in fact it's used for a ton of different things,
05:44whether it be art or just your own expression of yourself, and it can't be put into a box.
05:50Okay, so you can put it into a literal box, fine, but what I'm saying is there's no point in
05:55making a moral judgment.
05:56You can wear makeup and still smash the patriarchy.
06:02Slay.
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