Loose Women, Ladettes and Girl Power: How is modern feminism represented in photography?
ELIZABETH JEARY CRITICAL REFLECTIVE STUDIES CREATIVE MEDIA & VISUAL COMMUNICATION BA (Hons)
Cover image: I Am Arrogance (Jeary, E, 2012)
List of illustrations Pages 2-3 Essay Pages 4-13 Bibliography Pages 14-15
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List of illustrations
Plate 1: Gainsborough, T, 1770, David Garrick, Oil on canvas, National Portrait Gallery, London, viewed 17 January 2014 <http://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portrait/mw02424/David-Garrick?LinkID=mp01730&role=sit&rNo=4> Plate 2; Gainsborough, T, 1785, Mrs Siddons, Oil on canvas, The National Gallery, London, viewed 17 January 2014 < http:// www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/thomas-gainsborough-mrssiddons> Plate 3: Cameron, J, M, 1864, Henry Taylor, Photography, V&A Museum, London, viewed 17 January 2014 < http://collections. vam.ac.uk/item/O81072/henry-taylor-photograph-cameron-juliamargaret/> Plate 4: Cameronm, J, M, 1867, Julia Jackson, Photograph, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, viewed 17 January 2014 <http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/1996.99.2> Plate 5: Hackney Flashers, 1978, Whoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Holding The Baby?, Poster, The Radical History of Hackney, London, viewed 17 January 2014 < http://hackneyhistory.files.wordpress. com/2012/01/spence_the_hackney6.jpg> Plate 6: Hackney Flashers, 1978, Whoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Still Holding The Baby?, Poster, The Radical History of Hackney, London, viewed 17 January 2014 < http://hackneyhistory.files.wordpress. com/2013/06/hf_1.jpg> Plate 7: Williams, V (eds), 1986, The Other Observers:
Women Photographers in Britain, 1900 to the Present, Virago Press, London. Plate 8: Olgivy M, Dubai, M, 2013, Women Cannot Accept The Way Things Are, Advert, UN Women, New York, viewed 17 January 2014 < http://www.unwomen.org/en/news/stories/2013/10/womenshould-ads> Plate 9: Dater, J, 1973, Sabine, Photograph, Ordinary Finds, viewed 17 January 2014 < http://i12bent.tumblr.com/image/100777957> 2
Plate 10: Welpott, J, 1973, Sabine, Photograph, Live Auctioneers, viewed 17 January 2014 < http://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/3768299> Plate 11: Sherman, C, 1981, Untitled #93, Photograph, Museum Of Modern Art, New York, viewed 17 January 2014 <http://www. moma.org/interactives/exhibitions/2012/cindysherman/gallery/audio/6-93.php> Plate 12: Stehli, J, 1987-8, Chair, Photograph, Shafe, viewed 17 January 2014 < http://www.shafe.co.uk/crystal/images/lshafe/ Jemima_Stehli_Chair_1997-8.jpg> Plate 13: Jones, A, 1969, Chair, Sculpture, Tate, London, viewed 17 January 2014 < http://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/ jones-chair-t03244> Plate 14: Google image search conducted 17 January 2014 Plate 15: Liora K, 2012, ‘Rape’, Photograph, Liora K Photography, viewed 17 January 2014 < http://www.liorakphotography.com/ photography/fine-art/feminism/> Plate 16: Liora K, 2012, ‘Violence’, Photograph, Liora K Photography, viewed 17 January 2014 < http://www.liorakphotography.com/photography/fine-art/feminism/>
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VICTORIA & ALBERT Feminism as a social construct has evolved from its early recognition as a movement for the rights for women, to a modern concept of celebrating women and claiming equality. As women’s rights have progressed, so has the imagery that has been created with themes of feminism in mind, yet it may not be clear that this is the case. Historically, men, in their traditional roles of patriarch, provider, strength and ownership, were captured in both paintings and photographs in positions that alluded to the aforementioned traits (plate no.1). Women have been seen as objects of beauty, subservient and without power (even in high society – plate no.2). They have been depicted as soft and wilful, facing away from the viewer in a voyeuristic position, there to be looked at by men whilst still being aware of how they look (Berger, 1972, p46). This can still be seen in current imagery yet there are also images that challenge this convention, even in early photography (plate no.3, plate no. 4) As 21st century society has progressed and attitudes towards women changed, so has the acceptance from women over how they are represented in imagery. Now, more than ever, women are not only participating as the subject but are also the creators, viewers and the critics. This empowerment has provided a vehicle for women to demonstrate and represent issues they face due to their gender, using a combination of art and photography. Modern feminism focuses on women being treated as equals to men and therefore having the same choices. If women choose to present themselves in a way that can be objectified by men, it is their right to do so. But can this empowerment be communicated through an image? Feminists may still see this as a challenge, in that women do still choose to participate in imagery that promotes the female form as an object of desire. This is where double standards that give feminists a derogatory stigma can be understood. Female photographers who may be seen as feminist, such as Jemima Stehli, will often use the female form as a way of protesting the objectification of women, yet still presenting an idealised version of “beauty”, which is naturally desired by men (Battista, 2013, p143). Using texts and the analysis of images presented as representing feminism, or produced by artists revered as feminists, I aim to understand, evaluate and validate the use of these terms in the context of our current society. Can feminism be represented in a single image? 4
1: David Garrick (Gainsborough, 1770)
2: Mrs Siddon (Gainsborough, 1785)
3: Henry Taylor (Cameron, 1864)
4: Julia Jackson (Cameron, 1867)
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MARGARET & DENNIS The 1970s saw an explosion of artists and photographers wanting to demonstrate and confront issues women were facing in general life. Society was progressing and women were facing more freedom and choice than ever before, yet there were constraints that impacted on the availability of these rights, especially when it came to expectations as a wife and mother and the realities of working. The Hackney Flashers, a group of 9 photographers, illustrators and designers, came together in the 70s to contrast the fantasies in imaging with the realities of life for women. Their two exhibitions Women at Work (1975) and Who’s Holding The Baby? (1978 - plate no.5) focussed on employment and childcare, probably the most notable of women’s issues in that period – the battle between wanting to work but still being expected to be the primary caregiver to their children (plate no.6). Regardless of the Hackney Flashers’ intentions, there was a problem with their results, a point which Williams raises: “Despite the innovation of its method, the Hackney Flashers
depended to a substantial extent on picturing of women in need” (Williams, 1986 p175)
Some would say that deprivation and domestic disintegration was a reality for most working-class women of that time and that by showing this reality through images created by women, there would be a true representation. This reality would then be cause for campaign to assess and change the expectations antd treatment of women in society, but it’s possible that by demonstrating roles expected of them, it would cause re-affirmation by society (men in particular) that the role of women is just as seen – wives, parents, domestic helpers. Women working for magazines were often tasked with documenting “women’s issues” rather than being permitted to tackle a broader spectrum of work (Williams, 1986, p169) This may have felt like women were still being inhibited but actually may have contributed to the progression of representing issues women were still facing, as they were at least being recorded and presented, even if out of context. Some of the subjects may not have been seen as “women’s issues”, such as the miner’s strikes (plate no.7), yet women were keen to make themselves seen as affected by the strikes, in a capacity greater than home-maker, as Williams discusses “Women photographers documented the miners’ strike in a
way which was very different from that of male photographers. Throughout their work, feminists pictured the women as strong and joyous, sometimes uncertain, but always powerful…“ (Williams, 1986, p182) 6
5: Who’s Holding The Baby? (Hackney Flashers, 1978)
6: Who’s Still Holding The Baby? (Hackney Flashers, 1978)
7: Nottingham Miners’ Wives Support Group (Prince, 1985) 7
8: Women Cannot Accept The Way Things Are (Olgivy & Dubai, 2013) 8
Outside of women photographers working in the media, there was also a new wave of artists using photography as a medium for projecting concerns with how women were treated. Female only collectives working in and around London, such as the Hackney Flashers and Format, would work together to create provocative and agitprop works, using a mixture of images (both created and found) and text. Others, working alone, such as Alexis Hunter, also focussed on issues faced by women but in a more aggressive and confrontational way. Looking at how feminism has been presented in the past, it mostly focusses on showing women in challenging, deprived and desperate situations. It aimed to draw attention to issues such as rape and assault, societal expectations, such as looking after house and family and the different treatment in the workplace to men. Women being able to empathise with these situations would see the images as successful yet they may not have had such an impact on men. As men were most often in control of being able to affect these issues, would they have been able to recognise these issues as problematic? Or would they have seen them as affirmation of a womanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s role? A difficulty facing anyone (male or female) attempting to represent feminism in photography is doing so without enforcing stereotypes, seen recently in a campaign by UN Women (plate no.8), or being hateful towards men. There are artists that have taken an alternative approach to projecting feminism by taking control of all aspects, such as Stehli and Cindy Sherman, yet do these really represent what feminism stands for in modern society? It is even possible to do so without marginalising women further? â&#x20AC;&#x153; While Stehli is invested in the work of Laura Mulvey and
the ideology of the gaze in art, she does not profess to create feminist workâ&#x20AC;? (Batista, 2013, p145)
Photographers and artists using photography that have been labelled as feminists, or creators of feminist images, have often not provided evidence of claiming this themselves, such as Stehli and Sherman. There may be themes of feminism within their works yet the common element tying these women together is the fact that they feature women, have been created by women or have simply been successful, as women. The most important element appears to be that a woman has a different visual perspective to men, which is evident in photography. This was tested by Judy Dater and Jack Welpott in the 1970s. They worked together, photographing women they had a visual connection with (that were strangers) at the same time and expecting to produce different results due to the impact of their sexuality. 9
The results actually show marginal differences (plate no.9 & 10), which are presented in Women & Other Visions (1975), where the creator of each plate is indicated by a male/female symbol at the bottom of the page. These differences may only be apparent because the viewer is privy to knowing who took which image. If the symbols were removed, I am not convinced that any difference could be truly justified as being a result of the male and female gaze. This supports the notion that for women to appreciate art and photography depicting the beauty of women, they must temporarily assume the perspective of the straight man, since this is who the work is created for (FlickFilosopher, 2010). Dater may have done just this when she was taking her photographs, conscious that the beauty of these women would mostly be appreciated by men. Cindy Sherman is often revered as a feminist photographer, especially in relation to her earlier work, most notably Untitled Film Stills and Centrefolds. In both series, she is posed as the subject and author, seemingly representing a stereotyped version of women seen in films and magazines. Her intention was to create a recognisable figure, but not as a reaction to how women are represented, but to permit the viewer to add their own narrative (PBS, 2009) In allowing others to assign meaning and by removing official titles (Centrefolds is not her choice of title for the series â&#x20AC;&#x201C; she has referred to them as Horizontals but others have chosen the former as a reference), she has removed official meaning, allowing viewers to assign their own ideas on what it represents. Speaking on an image she refers to as â&#x20AC;&#x153;black sheetsâ&#x20AC;? (plate no.11), she imagines this women to have come in from a night out, drunk and dishevelled from a good time, whereas others will view this as a victim of assault. Although she recognises that leaving work untitled does make it ambiguous, she does not refer to this work as feminist in any way, so I would perhaps dismiss the idea from others (Owens, 1983, p75) that it is so.
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9: Sabine (Dater, 1973)
11: Untitled #93 “Black Sheets” (Sherman, 1981) 11
10: Sabine (Welpott, 1973)
KATE & WILLIAM It feels as if images presented as representing or with themes of feminism need to be distinguished as such. As with any image, it can be misread or misinterpreted if there is a lack of information on this image available. Jemima Stehli’s Chair (plate no.12) shows no evidence of being taken by a woman. It could have been taken by a man (as the protagonist of this image, Allen Jones, was - plate no.13) and received a different critique, rather than one of challenging the male gaze and authorship (Batiste, 2013, p143). This does lead me to believe that modern feminism cannot be represented in photographs alone. All viewers assign their own meaning to images, which will differ and be affected by social conditions and experiences (Berger, 1972, p8). With this in mind, even if photographs are presented as a representation of modern feminism, they can still be contested and rejected as such, even by those who feel empathy towards issues still faced by women in being treated and viewed as equals, as they may not have any experience of this themselves. Another issue with representing feminism in photography is the use of images to protest issues faced by women, which men may also experience but will often be overlooked. The use of internet search engines reveals results on terms ‘feminism photography’ and ‘feminist photography’ (plate no. 14) that show women with issues they face painted across their bodies in protest (Liora K, 2012 - plate no.15 & 16), or dressed as roles traditionally assumed by men. Feminism is not about separating women from men, or even wanting to emulate them, which these images would suggest; it is about being viewed and treated as equals. The issues being faced by women that are being protested are very much issues for men too and amending an image search term to ‘gender equality’ produces only marginally different results but also includes some of the previous results. This inequality is likely to contribute to the deprecatory attitudes that feminists face – the false stigma that they are all anti-male. “Feminism is a movement to end sexism, sexist exploitation, and oppression.” (Hooks, 2000, pVIII) summarises my understanding of modern feminism and yet I cannot find any photographs that support this statement. If feminists are to succeed in challenging views of women, the treatment of women and to obtain equality, it needs to be supported with images that are representative of modern feminism and the issues that are faced by both men and women alike. Although the past efforts of artists and photographers should not be overlooked, it is equally as important to move away from the stereotypes and negativity still being produced and create a more positive image of feminism so it can be accessed and appreciated by a larger section of society. 12
12: Chair (Stehli, 1997-8)
13: Chair (Jones, 1969)
14: Google image search using term Feminist Photography
15: ‘Rape’ (Liora K, 2012)
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16: Violence’ (Liora K, 2012)
Bibliography
Books: Battista, K (2013). Renegotiating the Body: Feminist Art in 1970s London. London: I.B.Tauris & Co. Ltd Berger, J, Blomberg, S, Fox, C, Dibb, M and Hollis, R (1972). Ways of Seeing. London: Penguin Dater, J and Welpott, J (1975). Women & Other Visions: Photographs. New York: Morgan and Morgan Clarke, G (1997). The Photograph. Oxford: Oxford University Press Hooks, B (2000). Feminism Is For Everybody: Passionate Politics. Cambridge, MA: South End Press Owens, C. (1983). The Discourse of Others: Feminists and Postmodernism. In: Foster, H The Anti-Aesthetic: Essays on Postmodern Culture. New York: Bay Press Warner Marien, M (2010). Photography: A Cultural History. 3rd ed. London: Laurence King Publishing Ltd Williams, V (1986). The Other Observers: Women Photographers in Britain, 1900 to the Present. 3rd ed. London: Virago Press Ltd. Websites: Art 21. (2010). Cindy Sherman. Available: http://www.pbs.org/ art21/artists/cindy-sherman. Last accessed 4th Dec 2013 James, B. (2012). The Evolution of the Female Gaze: an Introduction.Available: http://msbehaved.com/2012/05/09/theevolution-of-the-female-gaze-introduction/. Last accessed 1st Dec 2013 Johanson, M A. (2010). Defining the Female Gaze. Available: http://www.flickfilosopher.com/2010/06/defining-the-femalegaze.html. Last accessed 1st Dec 2013
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Moffat, C. (2005). An Overview of Feminist Artists of the 20th Century. Available: http://www.arthistoryarchive.com/arthistory/feminist/20thcentury_feministartists.html. Last accessed 15th Nov 2013 O’Hagan, S. (2013). PhotoEspaña 2013: the 1970s feminist avant garde. Available: http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2013/ jun/14/photoespana-seventies-feminist-avant-garde. Last accessed 15th Nov 2013 Unknown. (2012). Cindy Sherman, Feminist Artist?. Available: http://arth3539spring2012.wordpress.com/2012/05/06/cindy-sherman-feminist-artist/. Last accessed 15th Nov 2013 Unknown. (2013). The Hackney Flashers. Available: http://hackneyhistory.wordpress.com/2013/06/21/the-hackney-flashers/. Last accessed 15th Nov 2013 Unknown. (2013). UN Women ad series reveals widespread sexism. Available: http://www.unwomen.org/en/news/stories/2013/10/women-should-ads. Last accessed 1st Dec 2013 Wallin, Y. (2013). Do These Men Wearing Their Girlfriends’ Clothes Explore Equality?. Available: http://www.good.is/posts/ do-these-men-wearing-their-girlfriends-clothes-explore-equality. Last accessed 15th Nov 2013 Other sources: Oral History Interview with Judy Dater. Interviewed by Paul Karlstrom [in person] Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institute, 2nd June 2000
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17: I Am Glamour (Jeary, E, 2012) - A self portrait exploring the effect of genetics on character. Inspired by Cindy Sherman, as a creator of self portraits, not as a feminist.
liz jeary : photography