In facial beauty, attractiveness is largely based on averageness.
We are drawn to symmetry, balanced features, and proportionate ratios.
This was proved in a recent study where scientists morphed faces, and analysed participants responses
to the perceived attractiveness to these faces.
They concluded that, “Faces morphed toward the average were perceived as more attractive,...
"morphed away from the average shape were perceived as less attractive.”
In fact, 75% of participants rated the average morphed faces as most attractive.
Interestingly, this preference for averageness, transcends the human race and was noted in
preferences for fish, dogs, and even birds
In terms of biological differences, males and females are both attracted to sexual dimorphism;
features that differentiate the genders.
Dimorphism was important to judgments of attractiveness and personality in ancestral environments,
and carries on to modern time.
This hypothesis again is proved by a study which found significant correlation between
femininity and attractiveness of a woman as ranked by men.
In this study, women aged 18-24 were morphed on a femininity–masculinity scale by adding
or subtracting 50% of the linear difference between a 40 adult-male composite faces and
a 40 adult-female composite faces.
1972 males rated the morphs and preferred the feminine morphs over both the masculine
morphs and the original.
There is a relevance to this introductory discussion on dimorphism because there are
faces that can lie on either ends of the extreme and balance each other out.
One such example is a famous fashion model called Tsunaina.
Born in Tibet, Tsunaina rose through fame and notoriety and stunned the fashion industry
due to her unique look.
While at first glance her look is hard to characterize, it is apparent that her uniqueness
comes from a mix of western and asian beauty standards.
The first thing we notice about her are the robust masculine features.
When classifying masculine features, we look at the male dimorphic characteristics.
Sexually dimorphic features are defined as features which are different in men and women,
due to the different genetic buildup and hormones during development.
These are features which are determined by hormone levels such as estrogen, testosterone
and dihydrotestosterone which influence growth prenatally all the way up to puberty.
This is what causes the apparent bone structure differences between the genders.
Firstly we note her wide broad face.
Her Facial Width Height Ratio, a quantifiable ratio which compares the vertical length of
the face to is horizontal length, is approximately 1.85.
High FWHR is influenced by androgens specifically testosterone.
With the healthy range of 200-1000ng/dl of testosterone for males, compared to 5-70ng/dl
for females, it is apparent why this is a masculine feature found often in male faces.
This feature is so dimorphic that FWHR is a scientifically used predictor of aggression.
With a FWHR of 1.84, her face is broader than male
icons such as Bradley Cooper (1.74), and almost as much Brad Pitt (1.93).
Further analysing her lower third, we see her wide mandible and ramus, contribute to
her square angular jawline.
Her chin is also square rather than rounded.
All of these features lead to a robust, yet masculine lower third.
Another Feature we observe are Hollow cheeks.
Hollow cheeks are caused through the combination of prominent zygomatic bones (cheekbones),
and little buccal tissue between the mandible.
Women generally store more fat facially due to gynoid fat distribution caused by estrogen.
Secondally, high levels of estrogen cause water retention which also contributes to
a bloated look.
The bone mass on her face is also very high, which looks masculine as males generally have
more bone size, mass, and volume especially facially.
Therefore, through this we can see her hollow cheeks with a combination of prominent zygos,
and little fat in the buccal area which creates an attractive ogee curve.
Although she has all of these masculine features she still looks feminine and attractive Normally,
as both genders prefer average dimorphic faces, this would be a flaw.
However; This is where Tsunania’s face is unique.
The presence of these hypermasculine features are not a flaw, because they are balanced
out and complemented by her hyperfeminine features.
The first thing which jumps out are her extremely wide and full lips.
Just like the jaw, lips are dimorphic, however rather than by testosterone they are influenced
by estrogen.
This is supported by a study which not only found a correlation between femininity and
lip size, but concluded women's larger, fuller lips develop under the influence of higher
levels of oestrogen.
This same study noted that not only were the size of lips dimorphic, but even the color
by letting participants manipulate the color of the lips, and noted that “Participants
increased redness correlated to enhanced femininity and attractiveness of female faces, but reduced
redness contrast to enhance masculinity of men's faces”.
Even though her lips aren't proportionally perfect, with the upper:lower lip ratio 1.25
rather than the ideal of 1.618 (according to a study which tried to define the perfect
lip dimensions), their size makes them so appealing, However, the reason that it doesn't
look unnatural compared to other people with lips her size, is because they exist in combination
with extremely pronounced masculine features.
In essence, they are needed to bring balance and to provide femininity in an otherwise
masculine face.
Without her huge lips she would simply look too masculine.
It’s also worth noting how her lips curl upwards because she has so much vermillion
mass and as they’re natural they have even consistency.
Those who try to achieve this with lip fillers get the fish lip effect because it does not
match their mouth width.
Her high cheekbones are also extremely prominent.
High cheekbones are especially attractive in females.
In a study from The journal of cosmetic dermatology, 20,000 individuals were surveyed about facial
preferences all chose high cheekbones as attractive in females.
Researchers hypothesize that high cheekbones are a defining factor of high estrogen levels
in women.
Her cheekbones are also wide, and at their widest part are slightly broader than the
mandible.
This means that despite her well developed jaw, her cheekbones are still broader than
the ramus, which creates a tapered aesthetic look.The difference is visible, where the
red lines indicate the zygoma, and the white lines indicate the ramus.
This gives her cheeks a very pronounced Ogee curve and is part of the prerequisite in having
a hollow cheek’d look where as explained in Bella Hadid’s analysis some people cannot
develop one, regardless of how lean their buccal region is.To visually show this, Powel
Et al s method of measuring malar prominence show’s that her cheekbones are laterally
projected outwards instead of forwards as is ideal.
Also, transverse proportion wise, sometimes people might miss in terms of adding masculinity
is how close her eyes are to the outer facial border.
This gives her eyes a dominant, aggressive look as they’re positively inclined downwards
at the ideal angle and very vertically narrow with strong lower eyelid support.
The only quote on quote flaw would be her epicanthal fold which as explained in Eastern
Beauty Standards, Asian women felt made them appear weary and tired.
Also, she has a very thin neck.
This thin neck accentuates her jawline, and lowers her mentocervical angle which makes
her face look leaner.
The neck is a muscle and therefore usually smaller and less developed in females.
And even though males rarely train the muscle, the size differences are drastic because the
neck has a high percentage of androgen receptors and its size is greatly influenced by hormones.
As seen in the picture, the difference in the perceived masculinity of the lower third
is significant.
This lower third angularity contrasts heavily with her upper third roundness as rounded
foreheads are seen as a neotenous, feminine facial trait.
With a high hairline, what might appear as a disproportionately large forehead on anyone
else, hers is perfectly balanced by facial thirds.
The biggest prerequisite to having a modelling face is having ideal lateral and vertical
proportions as is the case here.
Lastly, the most salient aspect of her face, the nose.
Firstly, her nose tip is slightly wide, which makes her nose:mouth ratio 1.3, which is less
than the ideal 1.618.
This ideal was noted in the same study which claimed 1.618 was ideal for upper:lower lip.
However, this shouldn’t be confused with disproportion as her nasal base is actually
spot on at the correct width being in line with the inner eye corners.
The nasal base itself has a unique teardrop shape with a somewhat plunging nose tip which
isn’t common in Eastern women but is a common feature in Upper South Asian ones such as
Nepal and Tibet which is where she’s ethnically from.
While many Central and East Asian women typically have a flat nasal bridge and nasion Tsunaina’s
is much wider than average.
In 1986 Cunningham Et al Proposed the central face theory, finding that central facial features
such as the nose, eyes and chin are much more important for attraction than peripheral ones
such as cheekbones, ears and hair.
In the West, wide, masculine features are celebrated on both men and women, whereas
Eastern standards overwhelmingly prefer oval face shapes which Tsunaina definitely wouldn’t
pass.
Take Lucy Liu for example who has wide, masculine features desired in the west, but in the East
it’s seen as a sign of being a stubborn person.
With Tsunaina having a unique nasal contour paired with very dimorphic, feminine lips,
in a sense they cancel out to create a very polarizing face.
A good example of this effect is another Asian model Gao Qi zhen who sparked controversy
for aesthetically misrepresenting chinese beauty.
You may argue that modelling standards fetishize non standard features on Asian women but in
general, faces that have polarizing aspects sell the most clothes as they’re memorable.
Agencies like Anti-Agency pride themselves on scouting unique faces and have carved out
a niche in the industry as the gotos for iconoclastic taste.
What might be a flaw to some only acts as a unique selling point as her skin is clear,
jaw is developed and proportions are harmonious
For someone with such strong bone structure it’s unsurprising that they would have strong
symmetry.
As covered in our symmetry video, asymmetry at the jaw is most common with 75% of cases
being in the lower third.
However, as you can see in the morph her lower third is mostly ideal which already puts her
in a model tier category as a large portion of the population has some form of dental
malocclusion.
The only real point of asymmetry is at the uppermost hairline which is normal and slight
contour shifts in her nasal bridge which is only noticeable from an angle.
While on the channel we’ve covered examples of unconventionally attractive faces, there’s
none quite like hers.
It’s incredibly proportionate with over exaggerated dimorphic elements from the masculine
eye shape to the noticeable jaw and facial width.
On the other hand, she has feminine elements that women in both the East and West have
tried to emulate for years, with larger than life lips, smooth porcelain skin and a juvenile
rounded forehead.
Her features and proportions closely resemble current day angelina jolie who also has an
equally strong jaw with a rounded upper third.
The current paradigm in modelling standards seems to prefer cases of unconventional beauty
with social pressures of greater inclusivity but don’t be fooled into thinking that her
unconventional nose shape is why she’s successful in modelling.
Fetal Hydantoin syndrome gives a similar nasal bridge and nose structure to hers but those
children don’t become successful models.
If you would like to get your facial aesthetic analyzed, you can purchase a report at the
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