"Men act and women appear. Men look at women. Women watch themselves being looked at. This determines not only most relationships between men and women but also the relation of women to themselves. The surveyor of woman in herself is male: the surveyed female. Thus she turns herself into an object--and most particularly an object of vision: a sight."
Today's image of the body is very much inspired by how we see--how our body is seen influences how we see ourselves. The male and female bodies have always been directly related to one another, essentially because of the way in which males and females see the image of one another. "Men look at women. Women watch themselves being looked at." The female of today is not aware of herself as in the nude Venus of Urbino by Titan during the High Renaissance of the 1500s, but rather in 2010, the female is aware of her social power as well as self-empowerment. The male and female bodies are not coupled together as they are in the Egyptian sculptures of King and Queen Menkaure during 2680-2565 B.C.E. Instead of being attached to a wall and to each other, the female and male bodies of 2010 are free standing, free moving, and free from each other. The female is not supporting the male like the Queen did in presenting the King to the Pharoahs. She is independent, secure, and liberated.
As the cultural depiction of the mirror was often used to symbolize the vanity of women, the female self-image of 2010 represented in this photo is designed to flatter the female body, rather than just the male spectator. Women of 2010 are indeed aware that they are being looked at as a cultural "image" of the expected embodiment of today's female. She is strong, healthy, beautiful, and finally powerful. We no longer consider the image of strength, power, and confidence to be solely represented by the classical Greecian warrior--the perfect male body. Instead, we see today's female as beautiful in her own self-confidence, self-empowerment, and self-image. She sees the male see her as a vision of her physical female body, but the real female body of 2010 is seen as she sees herself--as she sees her own outer reflection as a representation of her inner self.
you should have been shooting him in the picture or something to REALLY convey the frustration with this concept.
ReplyDeletei like the things this picture represents. very cool!!
ReplyDeleteI find it interesting that originally I looked at the picture and saw a man observing a woman walk by. I saw the historical objectification of a woman by the observance of a man. Yet, looking again at the picture showed me that she is looking right back at the man. They are looking at each other. The woman is almost observing the man as much as he is watching her. Also, she has great shoes.
ReplyDeletegirl power.
ReplyDeleteI love the image - especially how the woman is checking out herself in the mirror. However, I have to disagree with your interpretation. She sees her outer reflection - her image - as a representation of her inner self. However, women still depend on men to define what beauty is. For women who fit the standards of beauty - such as this woman - thats fine, but for women who don't, there isn't any courage to look at their reflection in the window. Our society still has a long way to go.
ReplyDeletethis is an interesting concept, especially considering what we've been talking about. the image is very well done and i like how you edited it. i guess i'm wondering what would happen if you took this further... what happens to a woman when she embraces the fact that men look at her?
ReplyDeleteI like how you took a different approach to a picture of a woman being admired. Today's woman does openly recognize that she is being watched and can either use that for her advantage or be crushed beneath the weight. With those two options, I appreciate that you chose a strong portrayal of the modern woman in response to her objectification. :0)
ReplyDeleteI could have sworn that the street sign said "N. Male Street." The photo is funny and full of meaning at the same time.
ReplyDeleteI like it. The colors work, and the composition is nice. For some reason, while I notice the guy, the main focus of the picture is on the woman. It's clear that he is looking at her since he is about to take of his glasses to get a "better view". A little detail like that is awesome. It's cool to read about your views on the roles of women. It's also true.
ReplyDeleteYou go girl. Way to depict a confident woman. It makes me think about the "Olympia" painting we saw on Greg's blog - how the woman, rather than being shameful of herself, is confident even in the face of scrutiny.
ReplyDelete