Copyright by Sakurako C. Stephens 2019 The Thesis Committee for Sakurako C. Stephens Certifies that this is the approved version of the following thesis: The Power of Makeup: A Digital Ethnography APPROVED BY SUPERVISING COMMITTEE: Christina Bain, Supervisor Christopher O. Adejumo The Power of Makeup: A Digital Ethnography by Sakurako C. Stephens Thesis Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School of The University of Texas at Austin in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts The University of Texas at Austin May 2019 Dedication To my friends, family and faculty at The University of Texas. And especially to my pomeranian, Boo. Acknowledgements I would like to acknowledge several people that helped me through graduate school. Dee Matthews for constantly encouraging me to apply for a graduate program even when the dream seemed far away. My parents for supporting me in anything I pursued ever since I can remember. My friends for being my family and supporting me through the highs and lows that come with moving to an unfamiliar place. And finally, to Dr. Bain for being my mentor and role model; I only hope to be half as inspirational of an art educator as you are one day. v Abstract The Power of Makeup: A Digital Ethnography Sakurako C. Stephens, M.A. The University of Texas at Austin, 2019 Supervisor: Christina Bain The purpose of this study is to investigate how one YouTube makeup tutorial impacted and shaped viewer’s perceptions in one digital community. This study uses ethnographic content analysis to analyze a transcription of The Power of Makeup YouTube video and the top 300 comments left below the video. The text from the artifacts (transcription and comments) were coded and categorized into 6 themes: empathy and relatability, empowerment, societal expectations, insecurities, personal justifications and disagreement. Each theme is a reflection of how participants responded to The Power of Makeup through their comments. This research will help equip viewers with an understanding of how images are perceived. With this knowledge, viewers will be able to use critical thinking skills to discern fact from opinion. The findings of this study also provide information for educators to teach visual culture in the classroom. vi Table of Contents List of Figures ......................................................................................................................x Chapter 1: Introduction .......................................................................................................1 Introduction to the Study ............................................................................................1 Central Research Question..........................................................................................1 Problem Statement ......................................................................................................2 Personal Motivations for Research .............................................................................2 Professional Motivations for Research .......................................................................3 Definition of Terms ....................................................................................................5 Research Method ........................................................................................................6 Limitations of Study ...................................................................................................7 Benefits to the Field of Art Education ........................................................................8 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................9 Chapter 2: Review of Literature .......................................................................................10 Visual Culture Studies ..............................................................................................11 Social Media .............................................................................................................13 Beauty Vlogging .......................................................................................................17 Feminist Research .....................................................................................................20 Aesthetics ..................................................................................................................21 Normative Feminine Beauty Standards ....................................................................23 Visual Culture Art Education ...................................................................................25 Summary ...................................................................................................................27 vii Chapter 3: Methodology ....................................................................................................29 Research Methods .....................................................................................................29 NikkieTutorials and The Power of Makeup .............................................................33 Data Collection .........................................................................................................36 Researcher as Instrument and Researcher Reflexivity .............................................38 Data Analysis ............................................................................................................41 Validity and Reliability .............................................................................................48 Summary ...................................................................................................................48 Chapter 4: Findings ............................................................................................................50 The Power of Makeup Video ....................................................................................50 Themes ......................................................................................................................57 Conclusion ................................................................................................................67 Chapter 5: Conclusion........................................................................................................68 The Message .............................................................................................................68 Empathy and Relatability..........................................................................................69 Societal Expectation and Insecurities .......................................................................71 Empowerment ...........................................................................................................73 Personal Justifications...............................................................................................74 Disagreement ............................................................................................................75 Recommendations for Future Research ....................................................................78 Final Thoughts ..........................................................................................................80 Appendices .........................................................................................................................82 Appendix A: Transcription of The Power of Makeup ..............................................82 viii Appendix B: Top 300 Comments Coded from The Power of Makeup ....................86 References ..........................................................................................................................97 ix List of Figures Figure 1: Sample from The Power of Makeup Transcription. ..........................................36 Figure 2: Word Cloud of The Power of Makeup Comments. ...........................................44 Figure 3: Field Notes Sample of Coding The Power of Makeup Comments....................45 Figure 4: Sample from Video Comments with Key. ........................................................46 Figure 5: Nikkie de Jager bare faced in The Power of Makeup. .......................................52 Figure 6: Nikkie de Jager and Marilyn Monroe in The Power of Makeup. ......................53 Figure 7: Nikkie before and after applying makeup. ....................................................55 Figure 8: Nikkie de Jager’s completed look. ....................................................................56 Figure 9: Pie Chart of the 6 Themes from The Power of Makeup Viewer Comments. ....57 x Chapter 1: Introduction INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY From magazines to the internet, media projects a standard of beauty suggesting what we should look and act like. For example, there are thin models wearing high heels strutting in exotic locations, women with extremely contoured facial features, full lips and perfect eyebrows carrying exorbitantly priced handbags while they casually sip a Starbucks latte and slide into a luxury vehicle in a billboard ad. Articles and online tutorials describe how we can attain such physique or facial proportions whether it be through dieting, plastic surgery, or spending $150 on the newest miracle elixir. These beauty ideals are demonstrated by celebrities and various social media personalities, but what they do not show are the drastic procedures and photoshopping these individuals undergo to