Currency Makeover

I remember my brief stint as a graphic designer and marketing coordinator for an up-and-coming plastic surgeon in Beverly Hills, looking to release his own brand of pharmaceutical-cosmetic products. I drowned myself in a sea of data about the rise and growing popularity of non-surgical plastic surgery procedures. Botox and dermal fillers were the top of the bunch. I sorted through hundreds of pictures of results from non-surgical rhinoplasty, nasolabial folds procedures, lip augmentation, brow lifts and so much more. I was shocked to see how many people got work done. They are procedures not reserved for celebrities any more. In these photos, I saw mothers, daughters, grandparents, men and women, of all ages and ethnicities.

One day, while I worked on a packaging project, a woman had arrived for her rhinoplasty appointment. Fifteen minutes later, she walked out with a brand new nose. It blew my mind at how fast the experience was. The physician pretends to dust off his hands. I picture him speaking with self-affirmation, “Another job well done, if I don’t say so myself.” To him it was science and art.

As time went on, I’ve accepted the prevalence of plastic surgery in our society. Would I personally do it myself? Probably not, but there have been days where I’ve woken up (usually after a long night out), looked in the mirror and saw that fold in-between my eyebrow that permanently makes me appear angry. I looked in that mirror and thought about how easy it would be to get that fixed, if necessary. I was only 24 at the time.

We, as a society, have grown to accept plastic surgery. Even our money has some subtle changes in their facial features. Presidents look younger – look livelier. I’ll let you see for yourself. Please check out the Newsweek article for further analysis of our currency.

http://photo.newsweek.com/2010/4/money-makeovers-for-founding-fathers.html