Can Bald Be Beautiful?

Quick answer: of course it can. But that doesn’t mean bald is what everyone wants and feels best with. It has to feel beautiful to the individual.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. That said, there are frequently held ideas of what beauty can be – including whether or not the presence or loss of hair is attractive.

And for that matter, what is deemed “attractive” can vary by context. What might look hot in a club might not so much in corporate setting. Factor in also gender: a hairless man might be considered fearless in his shaved head, and so too might a woman. But societal norms are that men and women are not treated equally on all matters, including that of hair loss. Which of course is unfair.

Culturally speaking, however, most men and women do not willingly shave their heads of their precious hair. If the hairless look was desirable, people facing the loss of their hair would not be flocking to baldness treatment clinics and studios seeking out hair loss solutions to slow or stop their thinning hair. Hair transplant surgery, wigs, hair extensions, toupees and laser balding therapy are big business procedures.

So what is important to consider in the discussion of “can bald be beautiful?” is somewhat contingent on the who, the where, and the how. Hair loss for many cannot be controlled, but so many things around it can be. Factors that are more in the hands of the individual are:

Sense of self-actualization. First and foremost, the person who has hair loss has many options: chief among them are shaving the remaining hair, wearing some kind of a hair replacement system, and wearing a hat or scarf. What looks good on one person might not look good on another. The important thing is for the individual to recognize what they find works best for them – identify that certain something that expresses who they are – so that they feel their best as they go about their days and nights.

Sense of style. Style is natural to some people and less so to others. For the latter of these, the best advice is to seek opinions from third parties – preferably people of style.  There are professionals who operate as style consultants to those who need guidance, after all. The style-setting artist Andy Warhol began wearing wigs in his twenties to combat early hair loss. As he evolved in his personal style he acquired more than 100 wigs in variations of “shock” and “fright” in silvers and platinum blondes. Those wigs were not trying to be “normal” hair, but instead became part of his persona and brand.

Body fitness.  Could The Rock (Wayne Johnson) or Vin Diesel be who they are with a full head of hair? In both cases they also need their impressive physiques as part of their look, character, appeal and the roles they play. Far less common are women with hair loss, or elective shaved heads; however there are several female actors who did it for a role: Demi Moore in GI Jane; Sigourney Weaver in Alien 3; Charlize Theron in Mad Max: Fury Road; and Natalie Portman in V for Vendetta. Of note, all these roles were of tough women in action films, and every one of them had exceptionally fit bodies that made them convincingly powerful.  There is not a drawling, honey-sweet Southern Belle in the bunch.

In short, baldness can absolutely be beautiful to those who embrace it as part of their larger selves. The question is, what and who does the person want to be?