Eyeliner

LoveReading Says

Using beauty icon eyeliner as a lens through which to examine history and cultures across continents and through time, Zahra Hankir’s Eyeliner: A Cultural History is inventive in concept, and illuminating and entertaining in delivery. As arresting as the most perfectly applied eyeliner, it’ll make a gratifying gift for connoisseurs of cosmetics who also have an interest in anthropological topics. 

Eyeliner is also engagingly suffused in personal experience, as Lebanese Hankir shares stories of “wishing I could look like the blond white girls who stared back at me from the glossy pages”, until she encountered “Queen Nefertiti — my queen — for the first time.” This set the author on a journey of discovery as she “started to encounter Nefertiti everywhere”, and came to the realisation that “to wear eyeliner and learn about its origins is to bring not only ourselves, but also some of the world’s most fascinating cultures, into focus.”

To this end, Eyeliner shares utterly fascinating history from Ancient Egypt, where wearing kohl was used as a means of securing protection from Horus and Ra, and where the root of the word for “make-up palette” means “to protect.” Nefertiti’s influence is followed from her origins through to her influence across centuries, with a pertinent discussion of the politics around who has the right to claim Nefertiti as their own, and global struggles over imperialistic looting, and the rights of countries to have their artefacts returned.

Other cultures covered in detail include nomads of Chad, Japanese geishas, and New York drag queens. We also read inspiring stories of “eye paint as resistance in Iran”. 

Combining a wealth of disciplines, Eyeliner had me under its captivating spell from start to finish.

Reviewed by Joanne Owen
Joanne Owen’s lifelong love of reading and writing began when she was growing up in Pembrokeshire, and very much wished that witches (and Mrs Pepperpot) were real.
More reviews by Joanne Owen

About Eyeliner

A dazzling exploration of the global intersections of beauty and power'Fascinating' NIGELLA LAWSON'Awe-inspiring' FUNMI FETTO'A treat to read' KASSIA ST CLAIRA Sunday Times Style Barometer and New York Times Book Review Editors' ChoiceFor centuries, humans have been drawn to lining our eyes. The aesthetic trademark of icons from Nefertiti to Amy Winehouse, eyeliner is one of our most enduring cosmetic tools: ancient royals and Gen Z influencers alike have harnessed its power.Through Zahra Hankir's kohl-lined eyes, this ubiquitous product becomes proof of the stunning variety among cultures across time and space. By way of intimate conversations - with Chadian nomads, Japanese geisha, Indian dancers, New York's drag queens and more - Eyeliner embraces the profound significance of its namesake, especially among communities of colour.Eyeliner is a delightful and unexpectedly moving journey through streets and stages around the world, and a stirring reclamation of a key piece of our collective history.'A smoky-eye lover's paradise' NEW YORK TIMES'Hankir delves into the political contexts that inform our make-up choices' DAZED'A beautifully written deep dive' GLAMOURFeaturing stunning portrait illustrations by Mercedes deBellard

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