Gender fluidity is becoming less taboo, so when cosmetics brand War Paint — “Makeup Design By Men, For Men” — launched recently, they probably didn’t expect a backlash like this. “War paint. For men who’ve never been within 1000 miles of an actual war,” tweets @MykeCole. “It’s not water, it’s LIQUID DEATH/ It’s not makeup, it’s WAR PAINT/ It’s not an earplug, it’s a SKULL SCREW/ It’s not a donut, it’s a BRONUT/ but it’s definitely fragile masculinity,” tweets Bitch Media editor Andi Zeisler. UK-based War Paint claims it all started when they “couldn’t find a makeup brand formulated specifically for men’s skin,” in spite of the fact that several marketed-for-men cosmetic brands have been available for a long time, including Givenchy’s Mister and Tom Ford’s line for men — no macho branding required. The brand’s founder, Daniel Gray, who shared a video on social media discussing the impetus for founding War Paint, says it’s a “really personal story” for him. “I got bullied in middle school due to how I looked, so now I suffer from body dysmorphia every single day, and it affects me greatly” says Gray. “So my story is one about mental health.” He says shopping for makeup had been “intimidating” as an adolescent: “This is why I created the brand War Paint — something I feel comfortable wearing.” “It’s not perfect yet, but I’m working on it.” For all their attempts at inclusivity, many have been quick to call out their sparse line of concealers ($24 USD), which come in just three shades: Fair, Light and Tan. Compare that to Fenty Beauty, whose concealer comes in 50 shades. Their tinted moisturizers ($29 USD) and foundation ($32 USD) do include a Medium and Dark shade as well, but that won’t be enough to satisfy a shade-conscious consumer. One Twitter user was actually blocked by the brand’s account when he pointed out their lack of darker shades. Beauty buffs also reveal that, regardless of it being formulated for men, it’s got some questionable dermatological ingredients. “The foundation’s 3rd ingredient is highly comedogenic coconut oil. It also contains both talc & mica, problematic irritants & several silicones which ‘block’ pores. Plus a few dozen chemicals,” says @glowypanda. Militaristic connotations aside, the term “War Paint” has turned up in the media a lot lately — in decidedly unmanly realms: The Broadway musical called “War Paint,” about makeup moguls Elizabeth Arden and Helena Rubenstein, starred Patti LuPone and Christine Ebersole — gay icons, according to some. Also, LA-based indie rock band Warpaint features an all-female quartet.<doc-sep>Any makeup brand, especially one with only about 500 followers on Twitter, would likely be thrilled to rack up 2.5 million views in a day on an ad for its product. But War Paint — tagline: “Makeup Design By Men, For Men” — likely didn’t expect the reactions it’s been getting since its new clip was released on Wednesday. - are you wearing foundation? - no woman. it's war paint ️‍♀️ https://t.co/Prb1m0Zz32 — (@yungsailor__) May 9, 2019 WAR PAINT in masculine black packaging so nobody thinks you’re a ‍♀️ girl. Specifically formulated for your LEATHER TOUGH MAN SKIN also, a SKULL RING https://t.co/XofXFRj0R5 — Samantha Ravndahl (@SsssamanthaaMUA) May 9, 2019 The 13-second ad features a heavily tattooed white man using various War Paint products, flexing his pecs, and topping it all off by putting on a large skull ring. One thing it does not show very clearly is how the makeup looks on the guy’s face. But that is not the point of this ad. The point is to show you that this is a thing for men. Like, “real” men. Manly ones. The comments and retweets have been pretty universal in their mocking tone, mostly calling the brand out for its propagation of toxic masculinity, a theme this week in branding. (Hello, Liquid Death canned water.) It’s tempting to at first assume that this is satire or a clever tongue-in-cheek ad because of how absurd some of the imagery is. Exhibit A: But the brand seems to be earnest. UK-based founder Daniel Gray says in a video on the brand’s site that he started the brand because he wears makeup and has experienced body dysmorphia after being bullied in middle school. Makeup for men is not new, and is actually more mainstream than it has ever been, as Vox’s Anna North detailed last September. Tom Ford has offered a line for men since 2014 and Chanel launched a line of men’s makeup last fall. There’s even a website called Very Good Light devoted to beauty and grooming for men. Thanks to a glut of “beauty boy” Instagram/YouTube influencers, the Bravo show Queer Eye, and, presumably, a more universal recognition that makeup can be fun and also cover stuff up on your face that you don’t want to see, makeup on men is becoming increasingly visible. But the average cisgender heterosexual man still does not feel comfortable buying makeup, for a host of complicated reasons. War Paint attempts to offer a solution, but its methods are questionable at best. The line, which launched last year, features five products (concealer, powder, foundation, tinted moisturizer, bronzer) and tools like brushes and sponges. Prices range from $23 to $32, which is more expensive than drug store prices but about average for Sephora. The packaging is black with simple white graphics, making it similar to many other popular makeup brands out there, like Nars, MAC, and yes, even Chanel. The biggest issue is the name and associated imagery. While you don’t hear it much anymore, women have been calling makeup war paint colloquially for a long time. You put that shit on like armor and go out and face all the indignities of being a woman in the world, with your glow intact. There was even a book-turned-Broadway show of that title that told the story of beauty entrepreneurs Helena Rubenstein and Elizabeth Arden. In this context, though, the brand seems to want the association of traditional warriors, i.e. men. Think Mel Gibson in Braveheart. In a tweet attempting to clarify its positioning, War Paint wrote: “If females can have products just for women, why can’t men? Our aim is to allow makeup to be gender neutral and to do that we must have male specific brands also.” Achieving the goal of increased gender neutrality by making stuff for the underserved “males” demographic struck many as counterintuitive or even nonsensical. Bitch Media co-founder Andi Zeisler responded on Twitter: “Our aim is to allow makeup to be gender neutral, which is why we used a potent mix of cultural appropriation and militarization to brand our product as expressly for men’s tough skin.” Needless to say, using war imagery and tiptoeing into cultural appropriation of indigenous peoples to sell powder is going to get you some negative attention. But do men even need their own special makeup? War Paint explains on its site: “Seeing as men have a whole shedload of testosterone, their skin is both thicker and oilier than women’s.” The anonymous beauty call-out collective Estee Laundry points out that this wording seems to be directly lifted from that of a post on skin care consultation site, Skin Nerd. What is not included in War Paint’s explanation of why men need different products, however, is this continuation of the Skin Nerd explanation: “...for the most part, the concerns that women have about their skin and the concerns that men have about their skin are the same and can be treated in the same way.” I asked Phillip Picardi, a makeup aficionado and the editor-in-chief of Out magazine (and former editorial director of Teen Vogue and Allure, as well as a beauty editor), what he thinks of this brand. “What exactly is War Paint’s business proposal that they think [we need] a concealer or foundation for men? Is this extra coverage so that I can cover a 5 o’clock shadow or is this lighter coverage so that it doesn’t actually seep into where our 5 o’clock shadow is and look cakey?” he asks. None of that is clear. What immediately popped out to me is that the foundation’s third listed ingredient is coconut oil, an ingredient that notoriously can exacerbate acne in some people, one of the issues that War Paint calls out as a malady men suffer more because their skin is oilier. “Men don’t need different formulas. They need to be educated on what it takes for a makeup product to deliver desired results,” says Bart Kaczanowicz, a beauty blogger with 32,000 Instagram followers. (Like shade matching? See below.) Kaczanowicz points out that most men’s lines are seriously lacking in shades and a range of formulas that cater to different skin types. War Paint has definitely been called out for this. It uses imagery of primarily light-skinned men and only offers three concealer shades and five foundation shades. Most makeup brands offer more than 30 foundation shades, and in this era of Fenty Beauty and a rightful demand for inclusivity, many have 50 and beyond. MAC was founded in the 1990s with the tagline “All Ages, All Races, All Genders.” There are products on the market that are better, with years of formulation experience behind them. (Many even come in plain black packaging.) Kaczanowicz liked War Paint’s packaging and says he would try the brand, but had mixed feelings about the marketing. “What I find a bit harder to relate to are the visuals of six-pack abs and full sleeve tattoos. If I had a jawline as sharp as a can opener, I’d probably be oblivious to finding a bronzer to help define my features,” he says. “The rather masculine vibe of the brand almost feels too exclusive.” Picardi had stronger feelings. “When I look at the packaging, it speaks to all of the ills of toxic masculinity,” he says. “All of it is catered to the fragility and sensitivity of the male ego because god forbid you have a tube of black Nars concealer in your dopp kit. It speaks to how little men have evolved.” The caricature-level masculinity depicted seems purposeful. “I hate that men are still so afraid to appear gay. I’m sorry, but I’m afraid to appear straight,” says Picardi. But he supports normalization of makeup for men. “If this makes men listen up and maybe want to experiment with makeup and this is their gateway, then I’m fine with it.” that warpaint for men ad is bad in a Hip Musky Fashy-Fade Gentrified Speakeasy way but the idea the makeup can be socially normalized for men is inherently a good thing — Richie Pope (@richiepope) May 9, 2019<doc-sep>Toxic masculinity, but make it makeup. This is the marketing angle for men’s makeup startup “War Paint” (tagline: “Make Up Design By Men, For Men”) seems to be banking on with its brand debut. It officially launched yesterday (May 8) with a video showing a Herculean, tattooed bro showering, à la Old Spice commercial. He then applies concealer before slipping on a skull ring. The UK-based company, which told Quartz that it is not making comments at this time, immediately faced a mass groan from the internet. Some pointed out that its “War Paint” moniker was a sloppy rip on a Native American pre-battle practice; Twitter user Two Feet noted that the ad used his music without asking or crediting him. Most critics, however, were concerned that the combative, macho man advertising was pandering squarely to male insecurities about using beauty products, something that cosmetic companies have been moving away from in recent years. Interestingly, War Paint itself claimed the opposite, noting that its tactical, for-men-only branding was actually an attempt to create a gender-neutral line of makeup: And toxic masculinity-accusations aside, War Paint appears to be building its brand on misguided messaging about the differences between male and female skin. Its site notes that “men and women’s skin are very much different. Men’s skin is naturally tougher, produces more sebum (natural oils) which means men’s skin is more naturally moisturized, however regular shaving causes dryness. The increased natural oils in men’s skin makes their skin more prone to blackheads and spots.” Anthony M. Rossi, a dermatologist and assistant attending at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, told Quartz over email that while there are “some biological differences between the skin and sebum production of men and women,” such as hormone-related sebum production, and a different density of hairs in the beard area, “it is still hard to say that all men would need a different type of makeup,” adding that women will differ amongst other women and between men as well. Rossi also points out that most makeup is developed with similar ingredients, and that War Paint is no exception. “From the website it seems they add vitamin e and tea tree extract, but these still do not address the biological difference of men’s skin,” he says. The point being, that War Paint’s bronzer and concealer won’t necessarily work differently than something from CoverGirl. Beauty for Boys Beauty for men is big business. Last year, Chanel launched its first men’s makeup line with three products called “Boy de Chanel.” The label said in a press release that it wanted to promote the idea that “beauty is not a matter of gender, it is a matter of style.” Other brands across the beauty industry are echoing this sentiment. Other major brands like CoverGirl and Maybelline have tapped male beauty gurus as spokespeople. Likewise, men’s wellness and health companies have mostly abandoned the testosterone-soaked, shame-inducing marketing of male grooming products that dominated the early-aughts. You’ve seen those ads: The sad Rogaine-man pondering his disappearing hairline in the mirror; the meek Axe-man finding his mojo in a spray-deodorant. Many brands—like Hims, Aesop, and Chanel—have been favoring an inclusive, gender fluid, or genderless approach to grooming products (of course, they’re also paying closer attention to what might resonate with audiences in 2019, so as to better serve their corporate interests). In spite of that, the message is ultimately one of empowerment: that you don’t have to identify with a certain gender to use our hairspray, lipstick, or lotion, and you don’t have to be ashamed of using those things in the first place. War Paint, meanwhile, is playing on a particular brand of male insecurity to sell its products, and while its unclear if that will resonate with some, it’s certainly striking many as a tone that’s out of step with the times.<doc-sep>
Repeat after me: there are no rules for wearing makeup. As Daniel Kaluuya wearing Fenty Beauty on the red carpet or "beauty boy" Patrick Starr and his MAC contract can tell you, men can wear makeup. Yes, men. Can you believe it?!? A new UK-Based beauty brand called War Paint seems to think it's a novel idea—so novel, in fact, that they've created a line of makeup clearly, curiously labeled "FOR MEN." The products include concealer, foundation (in just three shades), bronzer, and face powder. What, exactly, makes these products just for men? For one, they have all-black packaging with all-white, capital lettering, so men don't have to deign to buy makeup in a pink package like some kind of girl. The ingredients are also apparently "tailor[ed] to the male skin" which is "naturally tougher" than women's. I'm a drag queen. I use literally the same makeup as women.... never had an issue with my "tough skin" — Kandy DaThrush (@KandyDathrush) May 9, 2019 "We couldn't find a makeup brand formulated specifically for men's skin; so we created one," the brand tweeted on May 8 alongside a video featuring a tough-looking, tattooed bro wearing a skull ring applying concealer. All of their videos so far seem to evoke 2000s-era Axe Body Spray, clearly targeting hetero men who obviously cannot be caught dead shopping for themselves in Sephora. "At the age of 12 to 14 I started using my sister's makeup, stealing a bit here and there, a bit of concealer, so since then I've used make up even more," Founder Daniel Gray says in a launch video, "But I never really found a brand that I found related to me or I felt comfortable in buying." Twitter has been having a field day with War Paint, coming up with humorous takes and valid critiques about the brand name and the toxic masculinity oozing from its campaigns: Wow, better take him swimming on the first date so you know what you're really getting! — Cassiandra (@catscomicsetc) May 8, 2019 Makeup called War Paint! Water called Liquid Death! If you've ever wondered just what toxic masculinity is, it's taking simple things like self-care and hydration and using the military industrial complex and violence to make them palatable to men. https://t.co/2gj4pdEkUe — amil (@amil) May 9, 2019 Not only that but the fact they’ve named their product ‘war paint’ screams of heteronormative toxic masculinity. They’re cancelled. — Emma Holmes (@emmaholmes_) May 9, 2019 Imagine waking up to him in the next morning...looking like a completely different person 👀👀👀 — Rhaenara (@ArtsyAnnetta) May 9, 2019 This is why women have trust issues 😅 — ZB Simpson (@ZBSimpson) May 9, 2019 If men’s skin is so special, then why does this foundation have all the same ingredients as @NyxCosmetics Total Control Drop foundation? My dudes, don’t pay a markup and international shipping when you could get the same thing at the pharmacy. 🙄 — SewMThing Clever💋 (@sewmthingclever) May 8, 2019 My wife is a professional makeup artist and here's what she says about your product: No, that’s not a real thing. That is toxic masculinity marketing — Rick Waldron (@rwaldron) May 8, 2019 It's not water, it's LIQUID DEATH It's not makeup, it's WAR PAINT It's not an earplug, it's a SKULL SCREW It's not a donut, it's a BRONUT but it's definitely fragile masculinity https://t.co/MQfw2cSEOi — andi zeisler (@andizeisler) May 9, 2019 The brand did respond to the backlash in one tweet response, writing: "If you look at our reviews you will see men from 16 to 75 using our products and loving them. If females can have products just for women, why can’t men? Our aim is to allow makeup to be gender neutral and to do that we must have male specific brands also." Kristina Rodulfo Beauty Director Kristina Rodulfo is the Beauty Director of Women's Health—she oversees beauty coverage across print and digital and is an expert in product testing, identifying trends, and exploring the intersections of beauty, wellness, and culture.