If you’ve found yourself scrolling through social media feeds, only to find that the algorithm is feeding you the same looking faces repeatedly, you’re not alone. To challenge algorithmic beauty standards, Dove is highlighting the idea that there is more than one way to be beautiful, and there’s a way for you to get involved too.
Dove brought that idea to life with a thought provoking installation at Waterloo station and it stopped Londoners in their tracks. Commuters at the station were met with a vending machine – it didn’t sell snacks, drinks or even travel essentials. Instead, it was stocked with rows of identical looking faces.
Dubbed “The Beauty Machine”, the installation was created to mirror social media feeds: appearing to offer variety, but delivered the same, unreal face again and again.
According to the Dove State of Beauty report, almost 1 in 2 women and girls in the UK feel pressurised to change their appearance even when they know an image is fake. The growing dominance of a single face of beauty online makes it even harder for women and girls to feel happy in their own individual beauty.
“Algorithms influence us far more than most people realise. They reward the images and aesthetics that generate the most engagement, meaning certain faces and beauty ideals are shown endlessly. Over time that repetition has narrowed the range of beauty we see online — creating the impression that there is a single ideal, even though real beauty is far more diverse across cultures and communities around the world.” says Dr Aleks Krotoski, international broadcaster, author and lecturer on the impact of technology on our lives.
Dove is questioning why the algorithm is getting to decide what’s beautiful. In a world increasingly shaped by algorithm-driven beauty standards, Dove reminds us that our differences are what make us beautiful.
To expand what real beauty looks like online and celebrate all of our beautiful differences, Dove is calling on women everywhere to submit a photo celebrating their own unique beauty. Share your selfie with the hashtag #DoveOpenCall to take part. Don’t forget to invite all the women in your life to do the same!
