Tracing Indonesia’s beauty history
Exhibition view of HYAS: Makeup Through the Ages. Image courtesy of HYAS.
HYAS: Makeup Through the Ages was an exhibition tracing the evolution of Indonesian beauty across generations, from inherited rituals and traditional ingredients to magazines, commercial cosmetics, and contemporary beauty culture. It was held at SPAC8, ASHTA District 8 from 3 to 6 September 2026. Initiated by Sissy Sosro, the exhibition features Allysha Nila as the curator, lead researcher and writer, with photographs by Thomas Sito and Muhammad Fadli.
Exhibition view of HYAS: Makeup Through the Ages. Image courtesy of HYAS.
Exhibition views of HYAS: Makeup Through the Ages. Images courtesy of HYAS.
The first section explored traditional makeup practices, herbal ingredients, packaging, brochures and tata rias pengantin, which refers to bridal beauty and styling. Here, beauty was presented as more than decoration. Makeup, hair, jewellery, and dress are historically interconnected, while practices such as paes, the traditional Javanese bridal forehead adornment, carry cultural significance. “In ancient times, our ancestors were very symbolic in their language and in how they created things visually. Instead of conveying ideas literally, they expressed them through things like the shape of the hair, the colours used, and the palette,” Allysha explains. The emphasis on ingredients and rituals also highlights beauty knowledge as something passed down through generations, often through everyday practices rather than formal institutions.
Exhibition view of HYAS: Makeup Through the Ages. Image courtesy of HYAS.
Exhibition views of HYAS: Makeup Through the Ages. Images courtesy of HYAS.
Further into HYAS, beauty became a reflection of broader social and cultural shifts, particularly through the colonial and post-independence eras. European ideals influenced perceptions of appearance during the colonial period, while the post-independence era brought renewed attention to local identity, ingredients, and traditions. By the 1980s and 1990s, international influences became increasingly visible alongside imported cosmetics and the growth of local beauty brands. The changing products themselves made this progression tangible. Makeup packaging, product design, brochures, and cosmetics displayed throughout the exhibition showed how beauty became increasingly commercialised while reflecting changing consumer preferences.
Allysha Nila, the curator, lead researcher and writer of HYAS: Makeup Through the Ages. Image courtesy of HYAS.
One of the exhibition’s most engaging elements was its extensive collection of beauty magazines, advertisements, brochures and tutorials. Walls covered in magazine clippings created a layered visual archive of makeup trends, hairstyles, product launches and editorial imagery across decades. Publications such as Rias, Kartini and Intan demonstrated the role of print media in shaping beauty culture before the digital era. For Allysha, the importance of looking back lies in reclaiming a history that is often overlooked. “Every time someone gives me a dress code that’s ‘Indonesian’, it is often reduced to the kebaya and the batik. There is a desire to go beyond that,” Allysha says. “We tend to look outside and forget about the inside, which is our own history.” Revisiting these visual histories offers new points of reference for contemporary creativity, while encouraging a deeper engagement with the archives that have shaped Indonesian beauty culture.
At a time when global beauty references are widely available online, Allysha believes that returning to local archives and becoming familiar with their visual languages can make for “more robust creativity.” The contrast with today’s beauty culture is striking. Where beauty advice once circulated through carefully produced magazines and printed tutorials, trends now move almost instantaneously through digital platforms. Yet the underlying cycle of discovery, aspiration, and consumption remains familiar. HYAS makes this shift visible while documenting the people, products, and media that have shaped Indonesian beauty along the way.
Exhibition views of HYAS: Makeup Through the Ages. Images courtesy of HYAS.
Towards the end, visitors could browse collections of magazines, books, and academic studies on beauty, extending the exhibition beyond a visual display into an accessible archive. The audience response also revealed a strong intergenerational connection, with many visitors recognising products and practices from their own family histories. “Much of the audience reaction was deeply personal,” Allysha shares. “People would look at the displays and say that their mother had used this when she was young, or that their grandmother and great-grandmother had, too.” The personal resonance of the exhibition also reinforced a sense that there was much more to uncover, with Allysha noting that many visitors felt the exhibition’s four-day run was too brief and expressed a desire for it to become permanent, given the amount of items gathered.
In relation to Indonesia’s rapidly growing beauty industry, HYAS offers a timely record of how the present has been built from layers of what came before. Looking ahead, Allysha emphasises the importance of developing products that respond to local needs. “If we make our own products, then we can have more of our colours, and have formulations more suitable to us,” she says. From inherited rituals and herbal ingredients to bridal makeup, print culture, imported cosmetics, and local beauty brands, the exhibition shows how Indonesian beauty is not static, but continually shaped by influences such as tradition, cultural exchange, media and commerce.
More information on the HYAS exhibition website and at @hyas.exhibition on Instagram.