project image
Khanh Xiu Tran
EVERYDAY MAKEUP

first performed on October 5, 2012
Pedro Albizu Campos Plaza, New York, NY
performed six times in 2012

FAITH HOLLAND

New York, NY
faholland@gmail.com
faithholland.com

EVERYDAY MAKEUP
FAITH HOLLAND

“Everyday Makeup” is about the ritual of “putting on a face” every morning. For many women—and even some men as the market tries to expand—makeup is an everyday activity, a necessity before leaving the house.

This performance dilates the experience of putting on makeup by applying a week’s worth in a single sitting on 14th Street in Manhattan. The performance takes approximately an hour, each “day” being reminiscent of “5-minute makeup.” Locating myself nearby various beauty salons, it almost appears as though I could be demonstrating products for sale, but quickly it becomes evident that something is awry. The piece condenses time and loops a typical morning together, in a seemingly endless cycle of putting on makeup—applied seven times, one layer on top of the other. Each “day” begins afresh by covering my entire face with concealer. As the makeup gets caked on, my face slowly turns an absurd pink from the mixing cosmetics. Finally, all the makeup layers are stripped off tissue by tissue.