The Definition of Beauty

Choreographed and performed by SIEDC’s Co-Founders, Zoe Couloumbis, Fiona O’Brien, and Sebrena Williamson, The Definition of Beauty premiered in July, 2018 at the Gangnam Gallery in South Korea. This piece was commissioned for museum curator and gallery artist Jacob Park’s art installation inspired by “selfie culture”. The layout of the gallery was organized with nine different artistic spaces, each with a different theme, in which the dance piece traveled through as the audience followed. As the piece begins with a representation of how materialism has taken over society, the dancers are seen being completely consumed with themselves and their own looks. The piece continues to explore the difficult process one endures when accepting his/her true and individual beauty. Reaching the last room of the installation, the dancers perform solos that showcase their strengths and move in a way that makes them feel beautiful. 

The final room held a wall of sticky notes written by every guest who had walked through the gallery. It asks the guests, “what do you have to say for yourself?”, encompassing that your self worth is more valuable than the way that others see you. Fundamentally, this gallery experience shows how femininity and beauty standards can be used to weaponize women against women. However, now with the rise of the “Me Too” movement, they have turned into a force of empowerment and unity amongst women everywhere.