the hairless male

I’ve long been an advocate of the smooth, hairless look.  Some may (and do) scoff at my choice, but for me it reflects a clean asthetic I’m comfortable with.

According to a recent article in the Washington Post, the trend is definitely catching on.

One of my favorite things in the article is how it points out the hairless look of neo-classical statuary and sculptures;

Waxing, shaving, depilating, lasering men’s body hair: It’s all part of the beautification of the male animal, an aesthetic that genuflects before the ancient Greeks. The surviving statuary shows highly idealized men, with hair on the head, perhaps the face and an appropriate patch at the genitalia, but entirely smooth-chested. The beauty was in the muscle, the tone, the curve of the triceps of the extended arm, the triple cords of the abdominal muscles. Hair obscured the clean-lined beauty of it all. This idealized image gained permanent Western footing in the Renaissance, when paintings and sculpture — right down to Adam on the Sistine Chapel ceiling, the very first man — was pictured as devoid of chest hair.

It also talks about the skyrocketing sales of items like the (UM beloved) Bodygroomer, and the increasing influence of spouses and girlfriends on guys’ grooming choices.

It’s an interesting read.