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Cyborg society -

Gradually, over the past decade or so, a cyborgian face has become the norm as you look through social media. This Instagram aesthetic encourages a "sameness" in its beauty standards.

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Cyborg society -

The filter effect look is usually seen on a young face, with defining features including poreless skin, plump, high cheekbones, catlike eyes and long, cartoonish lashes. The nose is small and lips are full.

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Celebrities with "Instagram face" -

Celebrities whose looks dominate this aesthetic include Bella Hadid, Kendall Jenner, and Emily Ratajkowski. Their features are strikingly similar.

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Photo editing -

When images of celebrities and models were consumed through magazines, editing by art directors using airbrushing was common. Nowadays, you can get the same effect on your phone, using filters.

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Snapchat filters -

One of the earliest apps to introduce filters was Snapchat. It's fallen out of popularity compared to its heyday, but its filters are an important way it keeps its user base.

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Snapchat filters -

Filters enabled you to see, for the first time what your face might look like if it was just a little bit more "attractive," for example with bigger lips or smoother skin.

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Facetune application -

In 2013, three years after Instagram launched and two years after Snapchat, the Facetune app was released, promising to "wow your friends with every selfie." The easy-to-use software allows users to touch up their photos quickly and easily—whitening teeth, smoothing blemishes, enlarging lips, and slimming cheeks. 

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Identifying the tweaks -

A number of Instagram accounts became dedicated to identifying the celebrity use of Facetuning in their photos. Now, those accounts speculate on cosmetic procedures, too. 

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Cosmetic intervention -

Twenty years ago, cosmetic surgery was considered drastic and unnecessary. However, after the approval of less invasive treatments such as Botox and hyaluronic-acid fillers in 2002, cosmetic procedures have increasingly been normalized.

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Cosmetic intervention -

These injections, which were first used to plump the skin and fill wrinkles, started to be used to restructure jaws, noses, and cheeks.

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Lower entry point -

At an average US$683 a pop, these injections aren't cheap, but they're nowhere near as expensive as plastic surgery. They also require less downtime.

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"Baby" botox -

Some injectibles are also marketed as being a preventative measure against wrinkles, administered in a smaller dose, known as "baby" botox. This kind of treatment appeals to a younger clientele.

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A younger consumer -

Injectibles introduced millennials and Gen Z to the cosmetic intervention route earlier than previous generations. Reality TV star Kylie Jenner has spoken about wanting fillers at age 15, when a boy made fun of the size of her lips.

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The Kylie Jenner effect -

Her resulting cosmetic transformation caused a frenzy. One clinic in the UK registered a 70% increase in requests for lip fillers when the star confessed to getting fillers in 2015.

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The Kylie Jenner effect -

Lip fillers and "Instagram face" go hand in hand, but their popularity may have begun to wane. Jenner herself said she had her fillers dissolved in 2018. 

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A billion dollar industry -

Still, that same year, Americans spent US$16.5 billion on cosmetic surgery. Out of these procedures, 92% were performed on women. 

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Lack of regulation -

One of the main risks associated with the cosmetic injectibles market is the lack of regulation around the industry. This has a knock-on effect on the safety of these injections' administration.

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Emotionally vulnerable -

A study by one Oxford academic found those with depression-prone anxiety traits were more likely to experience depression or anxiety after aesthetic procedures.

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Unrealistic beauty standards -

Women of every age have been presented with unrealistic beauty standards, and Instagram face is no different to the many trends that have gone before it. 

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Unrealistic beauty standards -

However, what has changed is the near-constant exposure to our own appearance with the advent of social media and camera phones.

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Image as profit -

Through influencer culture, social media has rapidly expanded the possibility of making money by creating a personal brand and image. 

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Better engagement -

As social media has become a benchmark for the beauty standard, it's changing the way people adjust their appearance. Instagram face demonstrates how people will alter their bodies for likes and engagement.

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Continuous self improvement -

The subliminal messaging of Instagram face could encourage people to go down a route of continuous visual self-improvement...but where does it end?

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Symmetry -

Some defenders of Botox and injectibles claim the aspiration behind Instagram face is the same as other beauty trends over the decades: the quest for symmetry, proportion, and harmony in facial features.

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Symmetry -

The difference for this generation is that it's possible to make changes, at a lower price point than before. It's also become more socially accepted.

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A passing trend? -

In reality, trends are fleeting and even if Instagram face has been the standard of beauty for years, the tide might already be turning.

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Instagram vs. reality -

A viral trend where influencers demonstrate how the same picture looks without careful lighting, makeup, filters, and apps like Facetune, dubbed "Instagram vs. reality," shows the smoke and mirrors that go into creating these unrealistic images. 

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Celebrating diversity -

In an age where celebrating diversity is a focus, it's ironic that trying to look more and more "the same" became a trend.

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Celebrating diversity -

As more influencers and celebrities are honest about using fillers and treatments to alter their appearance, and their removal/dissolution of them, perhaps we're moving away from Instagram face towards embracing more diverse, interesting, and ultimately real types of beauty.

Sources: (The New Yorker) (Live That Glow)

See also: Beauty is pain: bizarre beauty trends

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