EThere are good reasons not to paint your nails. Because this art requires precision work to the millimeter with a tiny brush. And further adversity awaits when it dries: Just a hair or a speck of dust and another crack appears through the top layer and the laborious work begins all over again. The whole process is for the patient. If you don’t believe it because you’ve never done it before, just give it a try!
As strange as it sounds, debates of great socio-political importance are repeatedly ignited over painted nails. For some time it’s been about men, because yes, they’re wearing nail polish again: no longer just on smoky stages like Kurt Cobain and David Bowie used to be, but also men in evening wear on the red carpet or in the café in the afternoon.
The history of nail polish was written by men
A little over two years ago, the story broke of 17-year-old Trevor, from Texas, who showed the camera his painted nails and said he was suspended from his school for doing so. There has been a lot of discussion about this on the internet. The school’s dress code stipulated that men were not allowed to wear nail polish. Trevor didn’t understand. Just like tens of thousands who signed a petition: “Allow males to wear nail polish!”
Such claims seem astounding when you consider that the history of nail polish was actually written by men. It begins as early as 3500 BC when Babylonian warriors dyed their nails as part of a war ritual. The Egyptians used henna for their nails, the ancient Greeks used yellow petals. In modern times, nail polish did not come back until the 1920s, when cars and their new paint variations attracted a lot of attention. Why not paint women’s nails too, when it works so well on cars?
Singer and actor Harry Styles waves to the audience at the premiere of the psychological thriller ‘Don’t Worry Darling’ at the Venice Film Festival.
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Image: AFP
When the French car manufacturer Renault launched another nail polish line almost 100 years later, in 2017, this connection between car paint and nail polish caused outrage. You can see a woman who first paints her nails baby blue and then uses the same paint to repair the scratches on her Twingo, which is also baby blue.
The accusation: Renault is playing with a sexist cliché, namely with that of the woman who apparently cannot drive a car without a scratch, but – what luck – always carries beauty products in her large handbag. The head of the Renault nail polish brand responded to the accusation by saying that men would also use this paint. For example, he himself has already started using it to repair the scratches on his car.
Perhaps the absurdity of the nail polish debate lies precisely in the fact that the gesture itself is so harmless. Wearing nail polish is rather subtle. You see hands when you get close to someone, when you shake hands, give something or talk to someone. The nail polish is actually only noticed in close social interaction. Or is there great potential for provocation in this?