Our guest today is a woman with a deep understanding of how the beauty industry works and how it permeates modern culture. Ellen Atlanta is a writer and brand consultant specializing in Gen Z and Millennial culture, and has worked with major beauty companies such as Estée Lauder, Boots, FeelUnique, Milk Makeup, Flannels Beauty, and The Unseen Beauty.
Her latest project makes her the author of one of the most important books I’ve read in a long time. Pixel Fresh It’s an honest, frightening and sometimes shocking look at the harmful side of beauty and the online world.
“We live in a new beauty era. Cosmetic surgery, augmented reality face filters, advances in photo editing apps, and more exposure to images than ever before give us the power to create the selves we want everyone to see. We pick, tug, squeeze, pluck, smooth and slice our skin until it’s unrecognizable. But is our beauty culture really empowering? Are we really in control?
In Pixel Fresh, Ellen Atlanta reflects on modern beauty ideals and the harm they cause to women around the world. Weaving together her own personal story and those of other women, she reframes our obsession with beauty cults and explores the realities of living in a digitally obsessed world where the pressure to present yourself both virtually and in person is overwhelming.
This episode explores a lot of themes in Ellen’s book and has some really honest conversations about the challenges many of us face in how we perceive and present ourselves to the world, as well as the powerful positive aspects of beauty and how, when used in the right way, it can build community and make you feel amazing.
We hope you enjoy this thought-provoking episode and that it sparks some discussion about the pros and cons of being a woman in 2024.
