Circles of Prominence: Dr. Young's Award-Winning Theory on Beauty

Our award-winning theory on beauty helps our team get you the best results available, and our goal is to take care of you like one of our closest friends or family members.

Learn The Secrets of How Dr. Young Discovered an Award-Winning Theory on Facial Beauty

Dr. Young

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Dr. Philip Young’s Circles of Prominence Theory

A Conversation With Dr. Philip Young: A New Theory on Beauty

Here, Dr. Young discusses how he trained in Beverly Hills and his experience with the Plastic Surgery results he experienced while training there. This eventually led him to discover his Award Winning Theory on Beauty called the Circles of Prominence. His goal with that was to find answers that could help get better results for patients. "We think outside the box to help you get the best results available". Watch the video to Learn More.

Watch: Dr. Young Tells Us About the Practice

You can scroll down to see an older video of Dr. Philip Young discussing his theory on facial beauty.

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Why Study Facial Beauty?

Why are we studying facial beauty? For one, understanding what makes a face beautiful can significantly improve the results we achieve for you. More importantly, beauty can have a profound impact on many aspects of life. As you explore our website, you’ll discover that there are many benefits associated with beauty.

As one researcher summarized, “good-looking equals good.” In other words, people often attribute positive qualities—such as honesty, intelligence, and work ethic—based solely on appearance. While this may not be fair, it is a well-documented reality. Studies have shown that individuals perceived as more attractive are often more likely to receive higher grades, advance more quickly in their careers, and even experience advantages in social and political settings.

The Limitations of Traditional Beauty Theories

Have you ever wondered what truly makes a face beautiful? This question has been studied for centuries, dating back to Leonardo da Vinci’s Neoclassical Canons in the 1400s. Even today, many modern discussions of facial aesthetics still rely heavily on these early concepts.

However, more recent research—including work by Dr. Leslie Farkas—has demonstrated that these traditional models do not fully explain beauty.

Other theories have attempted to define facial attractiveness as well, including:

The Golden Ratio (Phi)
The Golden Mask
The Theory of Averageness
Cephalometric analysis

Despite their contributions, each of these approaches has limitations and fails to fully account for how we actually perceive beauty.

The Circles of Prominence: A Breakthrough Approach

Recognizing these gaps, award-winning, double board-certified facial plastic surgeon Dr. Philip Young developed a new framework: the Circles of Prominence.

This theory introduces a more refined understanding of how facial features are perceived and how they relate to one another. It was peer-reviewed and awarded the Sir Harold Delf Gillies Award for Best Basic Science Research Paper by the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery in 2005. The theory was later included in the textbook Rhinology and Facial Plastic Surgery (2009).

Dr. Young expanded on this work in his publication, “The Circles of Prominence: Ideal Ratios That Determine the Basis of Facial Beauty,” published in the American Journal of Cosmetic Surgery in March 2015. In subsequent presentations—including the American Brazilian Aesthetics Meeting (February 2015) and the AAFPRS Fall Meeting in Dallas (October 2015)—Dr. Young introduced additional findings. These included ideal proportions based on the width of the iris, such as:

The distance from the eyebrow to the eyelid margin
The width of the nose
The height of the upper and lower lips
The lateral projection of the ears

These relationships suggest a cohesive and measurable structure underlying facial beauty—offering a more precise and clinically useful approach to achieving natural, balanced results.

“My goal was to find a method to bring back a person’s natural youthfulness without the operated, unnatural look, and that is why I have my patients bring in photos of themselves when they were ages 5 to 30. My YoungVitalizer helps restore natural and youthful contours they haven’t seen in years.”

— Dr. Philip Young, Seattle Facial Plastic Surgeon

A Timeline of Dr. Young's Discoveries

2005

Dr. Young publishes the first article on Facial Beauty: The Circles of Prominence: A New Theory on Facial Aesthetics. It was this first article that Dr. Young discovered some basic elements of facial beauty. Level One: A basic arrangement that Dr. Young discovered is that the iris, nasal tip, and lower lip are some key anatomic points that, when symmetrically positioned, create another level of beauty.

Level Two: He finds that the iris can dictate the ideal size, shape, and distance for many anatomic elements in the face. Level Three Dr. Young discovers that the face is further organized into obliques using these same anatomic points of Level One that are based on the oblique relationship established by the Iris and Nasal tip. When other elements are arranged in oblique symmetry with the iris and nasal tip, this Level Three element of beauty is achieved.

February 2015

After speaking at a number of Courses (2005 Boca Raton, 2007 Washington DC) and starting a busy practice, Dr. Young began studying Facial Beauty again. In February of 2015, he spoke at the American Brazilian Aesthetics Meeting in Park City, Utah, discussing New Theory on Facial Beauty: The Circles of Prominence Key Shapes and Distances in the Face. Here, he further finds scientific evidence regarding Level Two's Hypothesis that the Iris dictates the distance from the bottom of the eyebrow to the eyelid margin, the width of the nose, the height of the lower lip, and the lateral protrusion of the ears.

All of which are one iris width in length. Here is the paper that was published in Dec of 2016: The Circles of Prominence: A New Theory on Beauty: Ideal Distances in the Eyes, Nose, Ears, Lips. Or you can see this paper on the Sage American Journal of Cosmetic Surgery website: Facial Beauty Key Shapes in the American Journal of Cosmetic Surgery.

March 2015

Dr. Young published another paper in March 2015. This time, he further tests the idea that the iris, nasal tip, and lower lip are the keys to establishing balance when they are symmetrically positioned within the face. Based on these findings, Dr. Young finds further support for the Level One elements of Beauty described above. This was published in the American Journal of Cosmetic Surgery.

Here is the actual paper: The Circles of Prominence - New Theory on Facial Beauty: Ideal Ratios That Determine the Basis of Facial Beauty. Click here to read the American Journal of Cosmetic Surgery's article, The Circles of Prominence: Ideal Ratios That Determine the Basis of Facial Beauty. Here is a PowerPoint presentation on Dr. Young's 2nd paper on Facial Beauty: The Circles of Prominence: Ideal Ratios That Determine the Basis of Facial Beauty.

Oct 1-3, 2015

Dr. Young carries out another study looking into testing that the face is organized into obliques and what is described as Level Two elements of Beauty, and the ideal positioning of the ear. He also tests the ideal length of the lip's total length and the lip's ideal length of the pucker.

A further idea tested is the ideal positioning of the start of the nose. He presents his findings at the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery's Fall Academic Meeting in Dallas, Texas. Click here to read about Circles of Prominence New Theory on Facial Beauty: Ideal Dimensions of the Ears | Nose | Lips that was presented at this Dallas Meeting. Here is another article more suited for the non-medical person: Cosmetic Surgery Times article on his Facial Beauty Theory. You can find out more about us here: Top Ten Reasons to Choose Dr. Philip Young.

Our Philosophy

Our philosophy on facial beauty is only part of the equation. At Aesthetic Facial Plastic Surgery, our philosophy is even more centered on patient care and getting the best results for the most important part of our practice –our Patients and Clients.

Our Philosophy begins and ends with 100% patient satisfaction and care. This belief transcends every aspect of our business. Dr. Young invests in the most effective and advanced technologies the industry has to offer. The entire team believes in the power of knowledge and educates themselves on the latest facial reconstruction and rejuvenation research. Dr. Young hand-picks the very best doctors and staff members to guarantee every procedure strives for perfection and every patient leaves with a newfound confidence.

We believe in communication and honesty; we want to find out how we can treat you better. That is why we have multiple meetings before your procedures. Any suggestions will be met with a positive attitude. We see all challenges as a way to improve. When you have a procedure with us, you’ll find that there are many ways to reach out to us, either through email, cell phone, our work phone, or even text messaging. Our answering service can get a hold of your doctors at any time of the day. You can also contact us here at any time through email: Aesthetic Facial Plastic Surgery Contact Page. We fully believe in our mission statement:

Our Mission is to Deliver Unwavering Quality Care to Improve People’s Lives Through Facial Plastic Surgery and the YoungVitalizer

More on Facial Beauty

Dissatisfied with the current Thoughts on Facial Beauty held by many of the top doctors in the industry, Dr. Young spent years studying the patterns of beauty and its relationship with nature. Through years of extensive research, Dr. Young discovered his award-winning theory, The Circles of Prominence, which has been featured in Plastic Surgery Textbooks, Magazines, and peer-reviewed journal articles.

Dr. Young established key areas of the face where our eyes are immediately drawn, which convey the most about who we are and how attractive we are. Interestingly, we look for clues in one another’s eyes, as well as around the nose and mouth, where we take our breaths and communicate. Attractiveness is certainly in the eye of the beholder, but it is not random; it is governed by our inherent perceptions of beauty that we appreciate from the day we are born.

Clinical and academic studies support Dr. Young’s theory that, starting with the size of your iris, the arrangement of facial shapes can be seen as aesthetically pleasing based on simple geometry and mathematics. He also uncovered the tendency for these features to subtly manifest themselves in circular groupings – areas particularly sensitive to the effects of contrast and light, like history’s greatest works of art. Click here to read his article on Facial Beauty. Why is this theory on facial beauty so important? The knowledge of facial beauty and what makes a particular face beautiful is like knowing the architectural plans for a house. A theory on facial beauty is our drawing board for knowing how to carry out a certain procedure. Prior to Dr. Young’s Circles of Prominence theory, plastic surgeons relied on theories of beauty that Leonardo da Vinci formulated back in the 1400s. Dr. Young provides a fresh and more accurate approach to bringing out the most beautiful and natural-looking you.

Below is a 30-minute video of Dr. Philip Young explaining his Theory on Facial Beauty. This video is presented in relation to our Breakthrough Incision Less Face Lift called the YoungVitalizer. This is an older video. We are currently working on a newer version. Learn The Secrets of How Dr. Young Discovered an Award-Winning Theory on Facial Beauty