Conversation
“The Beauty of Being Me”
Vivien .
Vivien .
Beauty doesn’t follow standards…We have different eyes. We see different things.
V:
Freedom! The purest form of beauty to me is being able to feel completely free in the latest edition of myself so I can level with and engage in all the pleasures of life with zero inhibition.
The beauty I’d like to see more of is the kind of beauty that comes in the form of an unfiltered, soul-awakening, omg-my-belly-hurts-and-my-mascara-is-smudging laughter 🙂
I feel most beautiful when I’m well-rested, when I carpe my diem, and when my day is sprinkled with smiles shared with strangers on the street.
Me:
What makes you feel unbeautiful?
V:
I caught myself in a moment of jealousy on social media, and that saltiness—especially towards someone who’s objectively super wonderful—definitely made me feel far from beautiful. But! The beauty of learning 🥲 lies in reflection and recalibration. It is definitely still a work-in-progress, but
I’ve found it quite effective to consciously work on identifying comparisons that (most of the time) are quite pointless, and then logically reasoning myself out of ugly feelings.
Self portraits: Vivien
Me:
How would you describe the kind of beauty you’d like to create more of this year?
V:
I’ve been feeling so inspired by all the art I saw on a recent trip to NYC (I was especially in awe sitting in a huge room filled with Matisse’s cut-outs), and I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to start experimenting with different styles of making art in relation to movement and feelings of awe!
Me:
It is said that what you admire in another is a mirror of what you desire to be more of. When you recognise beauty in other women, what do you see?
V:
I see power in their comfort. I see the strength of bending without breaking.
Me:
The beauty I hope to encourage through this space is an intentional beauty that comes from a place of well being; from understanding, accepting, respecting and caring for one self. What does it mean to be intentional with how you cultivate a sense of beauty—inside and out?
V:
I would like to try and focus on the idea of Nourishment instead of Improvement this year. Despite them leading to a similar result, the connotations of each word mentally just feels different. I think the idea of nurturing, providing for, supporting, and cultivating generally feels more like it’s leading to a place of flourishing and thriving, versus the latter, which to me feels more focused on the end-game, like, “okay, you weren’t great before, I’m gonna make you better”. A nourishing, intentional journey breeds beauty!
Me:
What is a way of seeing beauty, or a belief around beauty you have outgrown?
V:
Beauty doesn’t follow standards. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. We have different eyes. We see different things.
Me:
What self-care practice(s) do you intend to deepen, or start, this year—for the benefit of your mental, emotional, physical well-being, and/or spiritual/self growth?
V:
Nourishment from whole foods, physical activity, making art, reading books to explore new worlds, musical instruments (I want to properly get into the harmonica this year!), exploring new places, revisiting old places, and more introspection to reflect and recalibrate 🙂
Me:
I read a line recently that reawakened this idea in me—that “we alter reality by altering ourselves”. With that in mind, how would you complete these statements?
V:
1. Stepping into this next version of my self, I am ready to… nourish the present, nurture the new, and welcome the change.
2. I am ready to let go of… shells of the past that are no longer helping me grow.
3. In 2025, the beauty of being me is… my comfort in evolution.
And then, I asked Vivien to write her self a love note:
Vivien’s
Beauty Heroes
“We’re in the peak of Boston winter, so the Ultimate Soothing Cream from Augustinus Bader and La Roche-Posay’s Cicaplast Baume B5+ are saving my skin right now.”
Name: Vivien Ong
Age: 33
Current home: Boston, Massachusetts
"Who are you?"
"I would say that I’m a curious and experimental person with a let’s-just-try-and-explore attitude. I don’t like the idea that I’ve psyched myself out of something and never finding out if I could actually enjoy it.
I enjoy visual and musical arts, and I love working with my hands, which has led me to a lot of different jobs! I’ve done all sorts of pre- to post-production, on- and off-camera, brainstorming and research writing roles. I’ve dabbled at art directing and set-design for a little bit, but the one that I stuck to for the longest time is modelling! The flexibility that comes with the job allows me to explore all the other creative avenues there are to explore."
❥