ABSTRACT

This article considers the way in which high-end beauty services in Johannesburg use a particular notion of “Africa” to brand themselves. Globally, the beauty industry is designed around an idea of indulgence, with pampering posited as a means of self-care, survival and joy. Marketing for beauty destinations often draws on an Orientalist idea of the “mysterious east,” invoking the stereotyped serenity of locations like Bali to offer bite-sized consumable contentment to clients. While it retains this focus on self-care as a practice of happiness, the burgeoning luxury industry in South Africa has seen the development of a new local aesthetic that treats the continent as an exotic landscape filled with healing plants and local wisdom. The article analyses the websites and physical salons of three high-end Johannesburg spas order to discuss their visual and textual representations of a mythic Africa as a site for luxury, indulgence and post-feminist self-care.

摘要

本文探讨了约翰内斯堡的高端美容服务如何使用特定的“非洲”概念来打造自己的品牌。在全球范围内，美容行业的设计理念是放纵，纵容被认为是自我保健、生存和快乐的一种手段。美容目的地的营销通常借鉴东方主义的“神秘东方”理念，援引巴厘岛等地的刻板宁静，为客户提供一口大小的消费满足感。虽然它仍然将自我保健作为一种幸福的实践，但南非蓬勃发展的奢侈品行业已经看到了一种新的当地美学的发展，将非洲大陆视为充满治愈植物和当地智慧的异国景观。