bardoftheunknown | Eugene Lee Yang's coming out through hair and makeup

During June 2019 I saw several creators I looked up to come out as queer. I connected to these creators in the early 2010s as I was figuring out my own sexuality, and they were a source of respit and creativity during this time. There was Phil Lester and Daniel Howell, who during this summer both came out with heartfelt confessional style videos. And then there was Eugene Lee Yang who came out with a heavily stylized dance in which the hair and makeup are integral to the story.

Each color of the pride flag is represented during this performance, and with each of them a new beautiful look.

First there is Red: Immediately we are able to see how Eugene feels within his family. He isn't traditional and he stands out immensely. Not only can we tell this with the color in his costume, but we can also see this in the fact his hair isn't as neat as the rest of his family members. He's also the only male wearing makeup.

Second is Orange: Here Eugene stands out even more. He stands out by being Asian (highlighted by the orange face paint piece), his loud personality and queerness as well are shown by his punkish haircut. I definitely had this same hair cut for a good couple of years when I

was first starting to be open about my queer identity.

Yellow: This is the look in which Eugene looks most in place. Sure he still has makeup on, but with everyone else in this scene it is still normal. He's experimenting with friendship and love like everyone else. Still queer, but not out of place.

Green: For me, this is the most heartbreaking scene. This is the first scene we see Eugene being visibly queer in his drag persona. We see him surrounded by other queer people, and we see what happens when this community is torn apart.

Blue: Because of Eugene’s differences, we see him being physically assaulted in this scene. His hair is messy but not intentionally. He’s covered in bruises and blood, and is left gasping on the ground. The way his look is in this scene makes it look like he could easily sink into the ground and disappear forever.

Lastly, Purple: Despite Eugene finding communities he truly belongs in, he finds himself in conflict with both. His hair in this scene is neat and swept away like the rest of the Asian people we have seen in this piece. Where his outfit and makeup are closer to the queer people that are shown. He is both, and both are at odds with one another.

Luckily for us they also did a behind the scene video that thoroughly explains the process and Eugene’s thoughts. This is an incredible inspiration and an absolutely incredible piece of storytelling. I'm incredibly grateful to be a part of the same community as Eugene and all of the talent in this video.