Beauty and Fashion During the Heian Period
Heian society prized beauty, elegance, and fashion. To be described as yoki (good), people had to come from an important family. They also had to look nice and be sensitive to beauty in nature, poetry, and art. Individuals were judged by how good their taste was. The ability to recognize beauty was valued over qualities like generosity and honesty.
Both men and women groomed themselves with great care. Small, pointed beards were considered attractive on male courtiers. For women, long hair was an important beauty feature. Ideally, a woman’s hair would grow longer than she was tall.
The Japanese of this time considered white teeth unattractive, so both men and women carefully blackened their teeth. They used a dye made from iron and other ingredients soaked in tea or vinegar. How one smelled was also very significant, so both men and women wore scents. Perfume competitions were frequent and popular. People guarded their scent recipes carefully.
For women, makeup was also important. Women used white face powder to make themselves look very pale. Over the chalky powder, a Heian woman put touches of red on her cheeks. Then she painted on a small red mouth. She also plucked out her eyebrows and painted on a set in just the right spot on her forehead.
A woman’s clothing needed to be beautiful. An aristocratic woman might wear as many as 12 silk under-robes at a time. When she rode in a carriage, she might dangle a wrist so that people could see the lovely layers of colored silk.
The love of beauty also showed in Heian architecture, calligraph, poetry, and artwork. Concern with form and beauty was so great that courtiers sometimes performed stylized dances as part of their official duties.
Both men and women groomed themselves with great care. Small, pointed beards were considered attractive on male courtiers. For women, long hair was an important beauty feature. Ideally, a woman’s hair would grow longer than she was tall.
The Japanese of this time considered white teeth unattractive, so both men and women carefully blackened their teeth. They used a dye made from iron and other ingredients soaked in tea or vinegar. How one smelled was also very significant, so both men and women wore scents. Perfume competitions were frequent and popular. People guarded their scent recipes carefully.
For women, makeup was also important. Women used white face powder to make themselves look very pale. Over the chalky powder, a Heian woman put touches of red on her cheeks. Then she painted on a small red mouth. She also plucked out her eyebrows and painted on a set in just the right spot on her forehead.
A woman’s clothing needed to be beautiful. An aristocratic woman might wear as many as 12 silk under-robes at a time. When she rode in a carriage, she might dangle a wrist so that people could see the lovely layers of colored silk.
The love of beauty also showed in Heian architecture, calligraph, poetry, and artwork. Concern with form and beauty was so great that courtiers sometimes performed stylized dances as part of their official duties.
Room 4 Questions
1. What tips would you give a woman about how to apply cosmetics?
2. How was a person judged during the Heian period?
3. Quickly sketch and label a drawing to illustrate an important idea about Heian beauty, fashion, and manners. For example, you might draw and color the face of a woman who would have been considered beautiful.
2. How was a person judged during the Heian period?
3. Quickly sketch and label a drawing to illustrate an important idea about Heian beauty, fashion, and manners. For example, you might draw and color the face of a woman who would have been considered beautiful.
