"Aesthetics can be used as a form of resistance": Rethinking eyeliner, from pandemic to politics

If eyes are the window to the soul, then eyeliner could be seen as amplifying the soul's purpose.

Following the onset of the pandemic, eyeliner experienced a boost in sales due to the widespread use of face masks, which concealed most of the face thereby emphasizing the eyes. Consumers worldwide experimented with a newfound term called “above the mask” beauty, specifically using eye makeup to tap into their creativity and celebrate their personal identity. By 2021, the global eye makeup market reached an astounding value of $15.6 billion and was expected to grow to $21.4 billion by 2027 and $24.49 billion by 2029.  

It was around this time that Zahra Hankir – author or "Eyeliner: A Cultural History" – also deepened her own relationship with eyeliner. The acclaimed journalist has always been an avid user of the defining cosmetic. But, it was something about the unprecedented and dire nature of the pandemic’s peak that compelled her to find more meaning in the lines she routinely drew around her eyes.

“Eyeliner was that one object that gave me a sense of normalcy,” Hankir said. “It made me feel better about myself, not just in terms of my physical appearance, which I think many people can relate to. But also this idea that I was connecting to something bigger than me and that I wasn't alone.”

Every time Hankir wore her eyeliner, she felt connected to her mother, her sister, her grandmother and, more broadly, her culture. Eyeliner essentially took on three major roles: the first being self-care, the second being self-preservation and the third being protection. Without it, Hankir said she felt “naked,” which is why she continued putting on eyeliner even when she spent most of her time in the comfort of her own home.

Hankir’s personal journey with eyeliner began during her childhood. Growing up in northern England, Hankir found it challenging to fit in as a young Muslim girl with Levantine and Egyptian heritage. Eyeliner, which was introduced to her by a close friend at the time, ultimately taught Hankir to embrace her true self wholeheartedly. Later in her adolescent and young adult years, eyeliner became symbols of confidence, rebellion and power.

“As my interest in this remarkable product deepened, I searched for its meaning in history,” Hankir writes in her new book “Eyeliner: A Cultural History,” which explores the cosmetic, social and cultural history behind the popular eye makeup. “There, I discovered an abundance of figures and cultural practices beyond those I knew from Western music and film.”

In addition to detailing her personal story, Hankir explores eyeliner’s significance in the stories of Nefertiti, Amy Winehouse and plenty more. She writes about eyeliner’s global reach, spotlighting tales of eyeliner in the savannas of Africa, in the hair salons of Iran and in the alleyways of Kyoto.

Salon spoke with the author about eyeliner’s influence on Western beauty standards along with its usage as a tool for resistance, namely in the aftermath of Mahsa Amini’s death. 

This interview has been lightly edited for clarity and context.

You’ve been interested in eyeliner for a long time, through your family but also through the lens of assimilation and identity. When did you know that you had enough to dig into beyond your personal associations, that you would be able to make a book on this subject?

I've had sort of a long history with wearing eyeliner. And I always had an inkling or basic knowledge that it was about more than beauty — that it was closely tied to heritage and identity. It wasn't until much later on that I explored the idea of a book. I think the moment for me was when I was having dinner with a close Iranian friend and we're talking about book ideas. At some point, I think both of us just pulled out our eyeliner – it just happened to be that she pulled her out and I pulled out mine. And then we both started talking about how important these objects were for identity, but also our aesthetic. That was the moment I was like, "Wait a minute, has this ever been done before?" Even though there's this long history of eyeliner that dates back to ancient texts and poetry and art, intersectionality could actually help in terms of writing a book because each culture and community has their own experiences with eyeliner, but there's actually a through line there in the sense that it's about so much more than beauty. It comes down to things like identity and heritage and power and gender and race and so many other things. 

I wanted to touch on something that you mentioned earlier, about how your relationship with eyeliner changed amid the pandemic and you were embracing it to a greater extent. Can you talk about the specifics?

To me, the pandemic enhanced this idea that eyeliner was closely associated with me, with my mental health. Even though I might be struggling in some areas, as so many of us did during the pandemic, and struggling to find a sense of normalcy for me, eyeliner was that one object that gave me that sense of normalcy, and that it wasn't something that I was going to give up. Eyeliner made me feel better about myself, not just in terms of my physical appearance, which I think many people can relate to. But also this idea that I was connecting to something bigger than me and that I wasn't alone. Every time I wear my eyeliner, I feel like I'm connecting to my mother and my sister and my grandmother and my culture. So I think in that sense, it took on this role of being a part of not just self care, but also self-preservation, because it just gave me this feeling that I feel protected when I wear my eyeliner. When I don't wear it, I feel like I'm naked. The pandemic could have been a moment for me where I said, ‘Well, I'm not really going out. I'm not seeing people. I'm staying at home alone.’ This is the one time when I could have stopped wearing eyeliner, but actually it's something that I continue to turn to.

As you note in your book, eyeliner is a distinctly Eastern makeup creation, with Nefertiti being one of the biggest influences in bringing this makeup practice to the rest of the world, especially the West. Could you talk more about how eyeliner affected Western beauty standards? 

What I argue in the book is that Nefertiti was really our original beauty influencer, and our idea of Nefertiti derives from her bust. I think almost immediately there was this idea of Nefertiti being an exotic beauty. And part of that was because of the way her eyes were stencils. She had these very piercing eyes . . . it's interesting because one of her eyes was actually missing but both of the eyes were lined. And she had this perfectly symmetrical face with very strong cheekbones and jaw. How do you emulate that look, right? Well, people were transfixed by that look, understandably. And one of the tools that they used was eyeliner because they could only really emulate the look by getting her big white collar necklaces, styling their hair or wearing their hats in a particular way and eyeliner. So I think that part of this infatuation with her was this idea that you could look “exotic” like her by wearing eyeliner, and I think that that is an extension of Orientalism and this obsession with Egypt which was called Egyptomania.

Many beauty magazines started to write these feature stories about Nefertiti and you would have a white woman posing next to the bust of Nefertiti. Now, the interesting part of that discourse, I think, was that the backdrop of that was racism and a lack of representation or adequate representation in the beauty industry for women of color. And there were these stories about Nefertiti that would advise women how to look like her, but they would say, "Don't darken your skin too much," that kind of thing. So, the backdrop of racism, I think in Orientalism, was very present at the time. The beauty standards of the time were quite Eurocentric, but they were cherry-picking elements of Eastern beauty. And one of those things that they cherry-picked was the darkened eyes, the idea of darkened eyes and eyeliner. 

I think that kind of appropriation still exists today. It's almost like fetishizing Nefertiti whilst not humanizing her. And I think that we continue to see that today 100 years later, in many ways, even though there have been improvements. I think what eyeliner says about beauty standards in that specific context, the popularization of Nefertiti was that they were not fully ready to revise their beauty standards. They were just saying: we still adhere to European beauty standards. But let's take this one really interesting element of Eastern beauty and let's try to copy that ourselves.

What is the impact when people like Kylie Jenner take on makeup trends like eyeliner styles that make them look more “ethnically ambiguous” even though she’s white?

I think ultimately, we should be offering credit where credit is due. And if there are particular beauty practices or makeup practices that originate in the East, we should be quite sensitive to that and we should at least educate ourselves. I think when white celebrities and influencers cherry pick elements of Black and brown beauty in a way that makes them look ethnically ambiguous, to say the very least. I think that's highly problematic because we still exist in a world in which Black and brown beauty is not celebrated as much as white beauty. So, it's easy to dip into these parts of Black and brown beauty without actually experiencing any form of racism that might be associated with being Black or brown. 

I think with eyeliner too, there have been certain trends. Fox is one of them, this idea where people are giving themselves this sort of elongated eye look with the help of eyeliner. In some cases, models would pose in a certain way to accentuate their eyes in a certain way, whereas many Asian women had actually experienced a great deal of racism for the way that their eye might have naturally looked right when they were growing up. People need to be knowledgeable about the fact that they may be adopting a certain look that they consider “trendy” when in fact, there are many women around the world who have been mocked and who have experienced racism for having precisely that look.

Beyond just identity, your book highlights how eyeliner and makeup in general, can be used for resistance, specifically citing the case of Mahsa Amini (also known as Jîna) and the strict Islamic dress code for women in Iran. How did you find the women who were willing to speak about this? And what did you learn from them?

That was a very sensitive chapter because I was actually due to travel to Iran at the time when the protests broke out and I wasn't able to. I worked very closely with an Iranian research assistant there who assisted me with gathering the quotes and the information that I needed. And I give credit to her, of course. I don't think I would have been able to put that chapter together without her assistance, especially because you need the local language and you need the ability to research to provide a more comprehensive look at these particular cultures and communities. I'm very indebted to the research assistant for her assistance. 

It was such a sensitive time when it came to the idea of how a woman presents herself there in a way that actually heightens the relevance of the conversation, because makeup plays a huge role in Iran when it comes to self-expression. The face takes on outsize importance there because there aren't that many other avenues to self-expression. Iran is actually one of the biggest consumers of cosmetics in the entire world, but there is a lot of nuance around how women wear eyeliner there. Cosmetics were banned effectively in 1979, but women found very creative ways to still self-express, even though they had to cover their bodies. Eyeliner was one of those tools. Women were wearing eyeliner in sort of bold ways, or they were wearing nail polish or lipstick. It's quite fascinating as well because sormeh is considered to be permissible because the Prophet Muhammad was said to have worn a form of eyeliner. A very subtle wearing of eyeliner along the water lines, for example, might be considered completely fine, but to wear a wing in certain spaces will get a lot of attention. I think what I really took from the research is that Iranian women are incredibly resourceful, incredibly creative when it comes to self-expression, no matter what the restrictions placed upon them are.

You write about the importance of distinct makeup in Chola culture. And although it’s not seen as resistance per se, sometimes embracing your identity can be seen as political or a social commentary. What did you learn in research and speaking to women who were proud of their chola presentation?

I think the Chola community is the perfect example or manifestation of how makeup can actually be political, and aesthetics can be used as a form of resistance. The history of that is that when the Mexican community moved here, they experienced a great deal of racism and pressure upon them to assimilate, especially when it came to their aesthetics. The backdrop of that is racism and this idea that you should assimilate into Anglo-American culture. So, for the Chola community, the way that they dressed and wore their makeup was actually a part of the broader resistance. There was all the political activism, but there was also aesthetic activism, and the aesthetic was very distinct. It's lined eyes, lined lips, the nameplate necklace, the big hoop earrings, the big hair and a specific type of clothing. For them to wear that clothing is to take pride in their identity and in their heritage and to reject adopting anyone else's aesthetic. To me, that is actually deeply and inherently political. 

What's interesting also is that there was some cultural appropriation at the time of this aesthetic, which isn't surprising, by some white celebrities or fashion houses. Eyeliner is quite central to that aesthetic and it's wielded as a sort of  weapon in a way and as a form of armor.

Gwen Stefani has famously taken on the chola aesthetic (among others). What does someone like her miss when it comes to this type of cultural appropriation?

I think it was definitely a different time as well. I do have to say her “Luxurious” video came out many years ago. I think that the conversations around cultural appropriation have changed because people are more understanding that to take certain elements of beauty from other cultures can be problematic, depending on how that is then presented and packaged to the world. In general, I think there's more awareness. I think what people should know is that they need to educate themselves and how these messages can be received. There's just so much more to it and we need to be aware of those dynamics. I think any white person who engages in this kind of behavior, without acknowledging these dynamics, would be guilty of cultural appropriation versus cultural appreciation. There's a line there.

There are two individuals you devote whole chapters to in your book. The first is Nefertiti, whom we’ve already discussed. The other is Amy Winehouse, who is known for her bold and dramatic cat eye. What is it about Winehouse and her makeup that you wanted to delve into?

Nefertiti and Amy Winehouse are icons when it comes to their eyeliner use. I think what makes Winehouse quite interesting as a character is that it's almost impossible to separate her and our idea of her from her aesthetic. Amy Winehouse was inspired and influenced by many different groups, but she still took those influences and then made her own aesthetic and look. I don't think that any contemporary celebrity has been able to attach themselves into our memories in the way that Amy Winehouse’s aesthetic has.

At the same time, there was so much swirling around her in terms of what she was going through psychologically and when it came to coming to terms with her fame. Her fame took on a life of its own, and she was hounded in the press for her aesthetic. Oftentimes, she would be critiqued for the way that her eyeliner was worn. If her lines were not symmetrical,  they were smudged or they were smeared, she felt short of perfection. She was critiqued in a very public way right and that's obviously very problematic. I think there was an element of appeal and intrigue when it came to her aesthetic because it was like she the more famous she became, the bigger her wings became but also, the more she struggled with her confidence, the bigger her wings became. So her wings and her big beehive kind of lent her this level of security. She was very vulnerable in the public eye. And in some ways, I feel like the absence of her eyeliner actually made more of a statement than her actually wearing her eyeliner because in her final performance, she wasn't able to draw her own lines.

Could you discuss how her look is a personal inspiration to your own?

The idea of transformation and how layered the use of eyeliner can be is really epitomized by the story of Amy Winehouse. I also think people only celebrated her after her death and her demise. But actually, her aesthetic was so singular and so unique, that it was something to be really celebrated that should have been celebrated while she was alive as well. So, she's quite a fascinating figure, and I think when we talk about eyeliner, and the history of eyeliner, you have to look at the people who wore it. The history isn't just about the composition. It isn’t just about the liquid or the pencil or the pen or the lines or the pigments. It's about the person who chooses to wear them and why they're wearing them. I think that Amy Winehouse is quite a fascinating figure in that regard.