Conveying a pallid African American girl surrounded by dead sunflowers, Withered Beauty embodies society's idealization of one type of beauty. The African American girl is unable to grow into this conventional all-American perception of beauty, thus, she withers. The sunflower, a predominately Northern European flower, adorns her head. If you look closely you will see that they are withered and her skin is lifeless and white. This girl's beauty is purely exotic and unlike the American ideal, yet she is forced to adhere to its standards.
All rights reserved