Stein's Midget Make-Up Kit
Makeup, makeup history

Blackface

Stein's Midget Make-Up Kit
Selections of Stein’s Face Paint, The Cosmetic Co., New York

Blackface is the infamous form of stage makeup used by white actors and actresses when playing a black role in raunchy and offensive ways.

Since its inception in the 19th century, it has inevitably been seen as entertainment amongst the general public (mostly white audiences), especially in Britain, but was more admired in the United States since minstrelsy came to be on stage.

This is the reproduced poster of a William H. West minstrel show. To the left is Billy B. Van in real life, how he is without makeup and out of character. To the right is Van in blackface makeup, pink exaggerated lips via makeup and messy-looking hair, all to negatively and offensively portray a black man, thus making black men look ugly. Read more about Billy Van here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billy_B._Van

This outrage gained popularity in the 19th century and expanded the exploitation of racist stereotypes. In the midst of the century, blackface had been recognized as an art form, especially through minstrel shows.

Entering the 20th century, blackface was used by non-black (mainly) white actors to poorly and negatively portray black characters onscreen, portraying them as simple-minded, lazy, happy and content with being slaves, and abusive perverts towards white women.

If that wasn’t bad enough, around the 1840’s, they had real black actors apply blackface to perform onstage, which made them look even worse, not to mention, made them portray themselves the wrong way.

Frederick Douglass criticized blackface and was one of the first people to do so against the institution of blackface minstrelsy, condemning it as
“racist in nature, with inauthentic, northern, white origins.”

Examples of stereotypes used to negatively portray blacks included common stereotypes such as the Mammy, which promoted the infamous Aunt Jemima pancake mix. The Coon promoted the even more infamous albeit insulting fried chicken restaurant chain that was active until 1957, Coon Chicken Inn. Alright, that’s NOT cool!

  • 1919 Denison’s Makeup Guide For Amateurs and Professionals
  • c.1920 Zauder Bros. Catalog of Theatrical Society and Boudoir Hair Goods
  • 1926 Denison’s Makeup Guide for Amateur and Professional
  • 1926 Denison’s Makeup Guide for Amateur and Professional
  • 1926 Denison’s Makeup Guide for Amateur and Professional
  • 1926 Denison’s Makeup Guide for Amateur and Professional
  • 1926 Denison’s Makeup Guide for Amateur and Professional
  • 1926 Denison’s Makeup Guide for Amateur and Professional
  • 1926 Denison’s Makeup Guide for Amateur and Professional
  • 1910 Das Schminken in Theorie und Praxis (Makeup in Theory and Practice) Berlin
  • C. 1900 The Makeup Book For Professionals, F. W. Nack

Blackface appears to be a basis and shown as a theme in the 2000 Spike Lee film “Bamboozled”. The premise of the film is an African American television executive’s frustration with a television group and tries utilizing the use of blackface in a new concept to get fired, but it turns out that it gained popularity and became a success to the executive’s horror.

A poster for the 2000 Spike Lee film “Bamboozled”, which, although it failed immensely at the box office, it received a cult following for the satirical take on the negative stereotypical portrayals of African Americans.

Other than all that though, Blackface is a very sore subject for members of the black community everywhere.