Digital Cosmetics: A Semiotic Study on the Chinese and Global Meanings of the Face in Image-Processing Apps

The earliest extant depictions of the human face are not simply realistic but represented through specific technologies (means) and techniques (styles). In these representations, the face was probably idealized in order to empower its agency through simulacra. The history of art sees humans become increasingly aware of the impact of technology and technique on the production of visual representations of the face. With photography, and even more so with its digital version, technology is developed, hidden, and miniaturized so as to democratize and market technique. The result, however, a naturalization of technology, is increasingly problematic in the era of algorithms: artificial intelligence absorbs the social bias of its engineers. This is particularly evident in the domain of “digital cosmetics”: successful apps are used to process and share billions of facial images, yet few critically reflect on the aesthetic ideology underpinning them. This is an urgent task for visual, social, and cultural semiotics.