A New Idea of Beauty

The standards of beauty in America are pretty different from 50 years ago. Back then, our idea of beauty was a Barbie doll -- a tall and busty blond Caucasian with a pointy little nose. And people used to line up for plastic surgery -- including rhinoplasty -- to achieve that look. But race and beauty standards in America have changed. And that was the topic of discussion at the annual plastic surgeon's conference in Houston last week.

"Lemme get a gander at that there schnozzle under your Stetson, partner" might have been heard during Rodeo Rhinoplasty, four days of physician training on every aspect of the nose job.

Houston's racial and ethnic diversity -- providing an international range of noses -- makes the city an ideal location for a seminar exploring surgical techniques and modern beauty standards, said Dr. Russell Kridel, a Houston plastic surgeon who founded the annual conference last year.

"What we think is beautiful is changing," he said. "We have to know that so we can achieve what that beauty is. You can't think that everyone wants to have a long, thin nose."

Even in international, medically relevant sessions about the art and science of rhinoplasty, a Houston-bred icon's name emerges: Beyonce.

And so did her face and nose, projected beside likenesses of actress Lucy Liu and entertainer Jennifer Lopez during a talk Thursday morning by Dr. Peter Adamson, a renowned Canadian plastic surgeon.