Sexy or Terrifying?

Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, and there are lots of different sorts of eyes out there. Like art, attractiveness is subjective. I am constantly fascinated by what sort of people are attracted to various things. As the world allegedly becomes more open-minded, do our ideas of beauty change? Would Lady Gaga have survived in the 1950s, or would people mutter "I thought that Dada shit was finally over..." ?

                                                              Salvador Dali 1938

As times change, our concept of "ideal" seems to have changed radically. Although there will always be men who prefer fluffier gals and men who prefer athletic ladies, America's overall notion of "beautiful" seems to have changed pretty radically.

I like how the model on the right has on stillettos that mirror her staggeringly thin arms. Nice touch. Also, if you know of a "phone from bike" mounted on a tree in OKC, please forward the info.

Then again, curvy ladies like Christina Hendricks liken back to the "good 'ol days" when women were physically designed to birth healthy babies as opposed to simply being wire hangers for clothes.

Here at holdfast/BellaCozy, we're not just talking about the ladies. Recently, I commented that Steve Buscemi was possibly the most terrifying man alive, while my cohort admitted that she had once found this creeper attractive. Who knew?

On the right, he could be a charmer. The photo on the left could easily be a still from William Peter Blatty's The Exorcist. "Diff'rent Strokes" for different folks, I suppose. Although, neither of us are attracted to Gary Coleman.
                            

Unsuprisingly, we are also not attracted to the generic, all-American, muscular guy. Many times I have carelessly nodded along with others when they drooled over because it wasn't worth explaining that I prefer a man who can paint or write a beautiful song.

Why have a muscular Channing Tatum when you can have a mysterious and talented Colin Meloy? If women are attracted to muscular men because of the Darwinian will to thrive, why would men be interested in a waifish fashion model? Are men even attracted to the Kate Moss type, or is it women who perpetuate the idea of a size 0? Either way, Channing Tatum and Colin Meloy are both going to age, and I'd rather be with a man who is creative and interesting long after the abs gets soft. Besides, if I was married to Coiln Meloy, I'd be Carson Ellis: illustrating Decemberists' albums, bearing Henry "Hank" Meloy, and living in Portland. If I was married to that other guy, I'd just be "that one bitch married to Channing Tatum."