Makeup and I have had a long and complicated love affair.  As an adult, I was diagnosed with an autoimmune condition, which made me highly sensitive to metals and chemicals and severely impacted my glow up by limiting the products I can use.  This change sparked an interest in learning more about the manufacturing side of the cosmetic industry.

Mica is a mineral that is sparkly or pearlescent and is frequently used in cosmetics.  Half the mica used in the world today is mined in India.  Mica mining is dangerous and mine collapses and deaths happen frequently.   The mines themselves are more like small holes in the earth, so small in fact that the miners have to be equally small.  Most mica mining is done by children.  Children who miss out on school, play and a childhood.  They risk their lives, and many are killed, as a result of our quest for glowing skin and sparkly eyes.

My work features 2 faces, the top white face is lustrous, glowing and shiny representing western makeup wearers like myself.    The bottom face is that of a mica mining child, their bright golden opportunity of living their lives muddied, bloodied and crushed by the cosmetic industry and our hunger for beauty.

MAC Makeup pigments, acrylic mediums on board