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100,000 years of beauty is an incredible collection of books commissioned by Beatrice Daustresme, CEO of the L'Oreal Foundation and edited by Elisabeth Azoulay who came to the office to discuss the topic. We could have spent all day. Read more after the jump.For anyone who is interested in beauty, whatever your philosophy, intellectual, superficial, shallow, or deep this five volume set is a must have. It unites 300 writers of 35 different nationalities and 20 different disciplines including anthropology, archaeology, sociology, artists, etc. culminating in a fascinating study of what defines beauty throughout history to contemporary society and beyond illustrated with an eclectic variety of ancient art and contemporary photography.
Some of my favorite ideas and quotes from this incredible source and the people who created it.
Maxine Craig, a professor of women and gender studies at University of California Davis, said at the panel discussion I went to on the subject:
"Beauty is effort exertion, too much is seen as suspect and too little indicates a lack of pride."
This gets to the crux of every article we write in SELF about beauty. The tips and tricks are designed to highlight your options but not make it too complicated.
Elisabeth Azoulay, the editor of 100,00 Years of Beauty described the meaning of beauty:
"Beauty is the need for all human beings to transform yourself and or to preserve yourself. Beauty is a means to express to others what group you belong to. the body is not just a biological object it is a cultural expression."
This gets to yet another tenet of SELF's beauty coverage, we strive to provide you with the knowledge about what's available out there from the cutting edge to the door next door so you can decide for yourself what fits into your life.
Beatrice Dautresme, L'Oreal EVP of Corporate Communications & External Affairs explained why L'Oreal created this book now:
"It is important to dispel the notion that beauty is a futile obsession and a uniquely feminine interest. It is time to recognize the contributions of the beauty industry as a contribution to humanity."
And that - in my book - says it all. No wonder we obsess:)
