The act of using an airbrush to spray paint, apply liquid, or retouch photographs; the process of digitally altering images to make them look artificially perfect.
From 'airbrush' plus gerund suffix '-ing,' describing the ongoing action of using the tool or technique.
Airbrushing was invented for legitimate art and restoration work, but it became famous in the 1980s and 90s when advertisers used it to create impossibly perfect magazine covers—now there are actual laws requiring disclosure when images are heavily altered!
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