The Male Coiffeur

 My project seeks to analyze and explore a type of 'anomaly' in (Utah) culture: the male hairstylist.

When I went to cosmetology school, there wasn't a single man in any of my classes the 3 years I studied. Consequently, in the salons I've been to and worked at across the Salt Lake and Utah Valleys, no males were to be found. I didn't even think twice about it- hairstyling is a women's profession...right?

As I started to think about what I wanted to shoot for my final, I knew I wanted to do something intriguing, different, and that I had a unique interest in.

I began calling all hair schools within an hour radius of me. I had figured out that I wanted to talk to male hair stylists and hair school students to get their perspective on the industry, now I just needed to find them. I knew that this was a far-fetched idea, but I was going to focus in on a minority that doesn't often get noticed or thought about. As I suspected, very few hair schools had any male students at all. Out of 10 schools that I scouted, 2 of them had 2 male students each. Al and Jake attended Paul Mitchell-Provo, and Greg and Hero went to Cameo College in Murray. I took what I could get.

When I arrived at each of the schools, the guys were actually quite willing to talk to me about their decision to enter the beauty industry and how they felt about being very, very outnumbered in their chosen profession and location. As a bonus, I also came across 2 cosmetology instructors that were male and had many interesting insights.

I asked each guy a series of questions:
-What made you decide to enter the beauty industry?
-Do you feel like there is a negative connotation associated with males that do hair in Utah? Do you feel like you fit in at school?
-What do you want to do when you graduate? (Work in a full service salon, do events, etc)
-What do women and your fellow students think about you doing cosmetology?

As I was talking to them, I photographed them doing their thing at school. These are things that I, along with countless other girls, did in hair school: learned how to style hair and use product, played with manikin heads, studied big books of cutting and hairstyling, roundbrushed a million times, and stared in the mirror. These are things that most people probably haven't seen men doing on a regular basis. For that reason, I wanted to get inside their heads for a minute, to see what makes them so dedicated to this profession that they would forge ahead in a sea of women to make a living doing something they obviously must love. I got some great answers, great insights, and had some great laughs.

Al: "Girls actually love that I'm style-conscious. My sister studied at Taylor Andrews Hair Academy, and going there and feeling the fun atmosphere was what really made me want to be a part of the industry."

Jake: "I'm gay, so I'm already a minority in Utah as it is. I just embrace it. I like the versatility of doing hair- there's so many things you can do."

Greg: "I'm obsessed with making things look good-mostly my own hair. That's how I knew I wanted to go into this industry. Being a guy makes it so everyone knows who you are because you're the only one."

Hero: "I went into hair because of the creativity aspect, and because I have family in the business. [his dad owns a prominent salon in downtown SLC]. At first it was weird going to school with a bunch of girls, like what did I get myself into."

Justin: "I really didn't want to go into hair. I was a theater major, but my roommate convinced me that I would be good at this. He said men get rich doing hair, but he was wrong. I love teaching though. I think there is more pressure on men in this industry to be a true professional and to do well for the sake of supporting a family." 

Jake: "I was getting a degree in Geology but I got bored. Doing hair is so much fun every day that I wouldn't want to do anything else."

Greg: "I eventually want to do event hairstyles, like specialize in up-dos for weddings."

Justin: "The industry was actually started by males like Vidal Sassoon. It doesn't bother me much that I'm a minority for that reason- it is mainly just in Utah."

Cause

 

 

The Community Action Provo Food Bank is an organization that has teamed up with local grocery stores and do-gooders to make food available for impoverished people in the area. 80-100 families cycle through the food pantry daily, stocking up on what they need but can't provide for themselves. The Food Bank gets its food from stores like Smith's and Macey's, who donate about-to-expire or slightly damaged food that cannot be sold anymore but is still perfectly useful. Individuals can also donate food items by bringing whatever they want to give away into the center. The Food Bank also supports group food drives and receives abundant amounts around the holidays. All helpers at Community Action are volunteers. They do everything from retrieving large food donations from incoming trucks, unloading and categorizing food items, and arranging food on the shelves in the pantry. Clients of the Food Bank meet with a case worker before being able to shop in the free food pantry. The worker analyzes the customer's situation with them and creates a plan to help them get back on their feet. This part of Community Action's contribution to helping the needy is called stabilization. Clients are able to come and shop for food for their families, feeling a sense of empowerment and dignity as they choose their own groceries, instead of having to accept a handout or pre-packaged care kit. As clients receive help from the Food Bank and begin to stabilize their situation, they progress to a stage that Community Action calls rebuilding. The hope is that clients will become increasingly independent as they obtain the necessities while also making an effort to gain permanent security, and someday making steps towards retaining and saving money, purchasing a home, etc. The Community Action Food Bank not only provides a way for struggling families to obtain sustenance, but also believes in making lasting changes and building better futures for people.