Measured Beauty

Abstract

This paper draws upon a sample of Instagram images posted by the fashion industry's top "digital influencers" to explore what kinds of visuality succeeds in a social media environment increasingly dominated by metrics and commercialization. It argues that influential beauty on Instagram is "measured" in two ways: it is quantified and delivered to advertisers, and it is non-threatening. This dual nature allows influencers' Instagram feeds to become useful spaces onto which a range of aspirations can be projected and new technologies for monetization can be tested.