CORY WALKER

What’s your preferred name & pronoun?  

Cory. They/Them

Where did you grow up? 

Between Georgia and Florida

Growing up what was your first thought of the beauty world? What did it represent to you?

It started to appeal to me around 12. I grew up with a mom who used MAC products and I always enjoyed the part of people putting themselves together in that way. I didn’t know how, but I wanted to have a place in it. 

What are your earliest memories of viewing a beauty advertisement? Do you remember how it made you feel?

Maybe the standard Revlon/Covergirl commercials. I’m sure I dissociated because none of them looked like me.

How have you seen the beauty industry change since you first engaged with it as a consumer until today?

 Absolutely! Just the ability to have a foundation that matches my complexion and red undertone is something a lot of models didn’t have decades ago. They had to make it work with what they had and one flash camera would show this kind of ashy white thing going on. We’ve come so far. The representation obviously needs more work. 

Who were your first beauty icons?  Who do you admire today?

No one specifically, but my mom was the first person that I saw in close proximity really engaging and enhancing on her beauty. She always knew how to put together a soft glam look or whatever vibe she was going for.

How did beauty advertisements make you feel when you were younger and how do they make you feel today?

They made me feel invisible in a lot of ways. They also inspired me. I had to imagine what it would look like if heteronormative beauty standards weren’t so primarily highlighted. It’s a beautiful healing mess when you go from being a kid who never sees a reflection of themselves to dreaming up better than what currently exists. I feel energized when I see a good beauty ad, because I’m like, “I can give that and also take it further and bring more identities and levels of beauty along with me. The new vanguard really.”