Musings of a twenty-something

Any magazine worth its salt knows the importance of a good touch-up. Gone are the days when the reader of a woman’s glossie can expect to see a ‘natural beauty’ on the front cover. Presented instead is a work of art that is deviod of laughter lines, uneven skin tone and any wonky feature that in real life is considered endearing. The goal is symmetry and perfection, and it is that that shifts the mag from the newstand. 

This month, The New Yorker offers a very lengthy profile on the work of Pascal Dangin, the retoucher’s supremo. Working for Vanity Fair, W, Harper’s Bazaar, Allure, French Vogue and Italian Vogue he is the re-toucher or choice for many of the heavy weight photographers including Annie Leibovitz, Steven Meisel and Mario Sorrenti, and is on speed dial to a collective of vain celebs that won’t let a portrait escape to the press without a wave of his magic digital wand.