Polished Refined Women

This film is about the juxtaposed women's rights and how far have women really come in today's society. The twentieth century saw a dramatic change in perspective as to the position of women in society. But has that change been as dramatic as we first thought? Watching these images of powerful women while listening edited to this particular audio track asks the question of how far have we really come? These changes, like those that constituted the economic revolution, will probably accrue over time. They will come about as more women, and more men, adjust their lives to the conflicting pressures of family and work until a threshold of incompatibility is reached.

Fly Away With Me - Dream Sequence

This is the story of a little kite who wanders off into the world to meet with a special someone. Follow him on his journey across the fields and see what he finds. We ran into a few issues during the process but overall I think we're satisfied with the final result. Our original issue was a lack of tripod, so each image is slightly different which effected how the "scenes" lined up at the end. There was originally 2 more sections in this animation but we decided to remove them as the final product was too long. The second was the decline of resolution once I imported the images into SAM. I'm unsure why that happened but it's all part of the learning process I guess. The inspiration behind this film was based on the soundtrack. We were reminded of a summer day filled with hot air balloons and kites. So we thought it would be fun to create an animation of a wandering kite in its travels.

http://youtu.be/oDhaZElJ4Ho

Music by the The temperance seven
Titled "you're driving my crazy"

The Land of Great Expectations: Another American Dream

After

Before

              There are so many angles to look at regarding gender, but I chose to focus on what it means to be an "American Woman in modern times" as I know it to be. The ad I found for a salon in The Improper Bostonian was as close to perfect for this project as I could have hoped for. 

              Here we have a woman who looks like she fits the standard of an "ideal woman"- she's physically attractive, well groomed, and can afford to get her (already gorgeous) hair done at a Boston salon. From there I considered the human anxieties and goals of today's (American) women and placed them below the hair, as if they were being washed out. I was happy to recycle the slogan as well, because it works just as well in this new scenario.

Sources:

• Google Images
• The Improper Bostonian
• Boys and Girls Names for your Baby

Sexuality is My Own

 

Girls and women are continuously portrayed as objects of desire. They are degraded in television and movies both subtly and blatantly. Examples of this devaluation of woman's sexually can be found everywhere from high end clothing advertisements to cult classic films like Jack Frost (the horror film). Girls are pushed to dress sexier, be skinner and to continue to keep up with the latest trends. If they do not abide by these social expectations and peruse things like careers, they are often labeled negatively. If we don't put more effort into teaching girls about media literacy they will never unlock their true potential. Girls need to breakdown and push back on the societal pressures placed on them. This is the only way a woman can gain control of her image and once she does, nothing will get in her way.

Images found in this order.

http://resumebutterfly.com/classic-suit-job-interview-outfit/

https://www.facebook.com/BostonAtNite

Google search of "sexy women"*

*note the lack of women of color.

The Power of the Red Head

I spent a lot of time this past week reflecting on the discussions of our guest speaker from our last class, specifically the part about the Sally Field movie giving the Arab culture a bad name.  I don’t think the ‘makers’ of this film did this on purpose.  I want to believe people aren’t that cruel.  

That being said - red heads.  Always intriguing and always terribly sexy (at least to me) – male or female, the red head has always been prized.  And feared.  And even ridiculed.  I immediately think of Lindsey Lohan.  The question I ask; Did Lindsey Lohan’s stints with cray-cray give red heads around the globe a bad name?  I don’t think any of her over-sexualized, drug-induced antics were brought on because of her red hair.  Maybe I am wrong.

The picture on the right is of Linsday Lohan at the AMFAR kickoff to Fashion Week.  (SOURCE: nydailynews.com Troubled starlet Lindsay Lohan … February 6, 2013) After coming across the picture, I immediately wondered how I would have reacted if Lindsay’s hair was blond.  Would the blond hair eliminate any ill feelings I might have towards how I perceive her?  Is the media to blame? Blond superstars Britney Spears and Paris Hilton for example, seem to have “gotten away” with their antics, but for some reason Lindsey continues to suffer.  Is it the red hair?

*I realize that there was that one time Lindsay went platinum blond.  The look didn’t last long.  I’m thinking more “natural blond.”

The second pic is my attempt to give Lindsay Lohan a “blond” makeover.  Do you think Lindsay looks less troubled with blond hair?  What if she had brown hair?

American Beauty?

Ever since I was a kid I have been aware of these fashion magazines. Once every 4 or 5 years I'll pick one up for a particular article or to read in the bathroom. It always makes me sick looking through the pictures of plastic women in grotesque circus makeup and clothing so outlandish I can't imagine it could ever trickle down to reality. I think the worst part is the advertisements which take up the bulk of the magazine. These advertisements are geared toward the improvement of personal appearance. Silkier, stronger, shiner, straighter and tangle free, flawless coverage, perfect skin, longer lashes, diminished wrinkles, holding on to and regaining the appearance of youth. 

Who's In Your Bed?

The ‘American Dream’ of love and romance between two people once proved nitty-gritty, spontaneous, authentic interaction between those who felt frisson and found each other face to face, either as strangers, married, high-school sweethearts, or merely swinging in a fated moment of fling on a dance-floor. This original photo, feels more real in some capacity than interactions typically are in this day and age. No longer is sacrifice or commitment the norm. This image remix shows the cold, ice, artificial nature of maintaining a purely individualistic, instant gratification, social media approved, clean and no strings attached romantic relationship. Sure, each of these items (hobbies, sex, money, sleep, friend, luxury, nightlife, travel, freetime, spontaneity, and exercise) are beneficial to want in life and to maintain in balance...but when the priority becomes ‘how can I have my cake, and eat her too’...that is when old-fashioned, lasting, meaningful, human, respectful love –between any gender— falls to the wayside.

 

Photography Credits: Details Magazine April 2011 Issue, p. 106-107, 126-127.

Who can achieve?

Image was retrieved from: The Oprah Magazine, March 2014, pp.141. 

The image I chose demonstrates the way implicit messages in the media support the hegemony. In relation to issues of gender, media serves as an agent of socialization to the heteronormative model. The ideal model is of a white, young age, heterosexual male. This model is often being strengthen by the lack of representation of other options.   

In my remix I wanted to show a wider verity of people with the potential to succeed. Providing representation of a wider range than the heteronormative model, will express the value of equality in a fuller sense. Since the commercial is for Campbell’s soup I was compelled to reference to Andy Warhol’s work, and used a pop art style inspired by his prints. This adds another layer of interest in relation to gender. Warhol himself pushed the boundaries of the heteronormative model and was still a very popular and successful artist. 

Who is Beautiful?

In my transformative picture, I use an average woman who we can easily find walking on any street in the United States to advertise the same product. The purpose of the new image is to subvert people’s impressions of beauty. I believe that every person can be a model, but it seems that our standard of beauty is in fact defined by the images in fashion magazines. When you see the new image I created, will you think the model is beautiful? Will you still buy the product? Have you ever thought about what you really wanted to buy: the products themselves, or just the dream of being beautiful?

On the other hand, maybe we can use this image to test if Americans are really materialistic. If people don’t think those products are fashionable anymore and are not willing to buy them, then perhaps people are not really materialistic -- just extremely shallow and focused on beauty. However, if people still want to buy the products shown by the new models, they may just be materialistic at heart. Either way, people's’ values about this are deeply affected by their exposure to visual media.

Left image is retrieved from: VOGUE August 2013 issue # 08449

The woman in the right image is retrieved from: www.pinterest.com/jaacckkiieee/fat-girl-fashion/ 

Balancing the Power of Being a Pillar of Strength

 The power of the concept of the image below was that women have been the pillars of strength for many communities. The idea of women empowerment has been an ongoing struggle. Oftentimes women have not been supported or recognized for these struggles of personal balance. However, women have been there. They have been woven into the very fibers of the society. To symbolize this universal role of women, I used a tree. When one has gazed at the remixed photo of a woman balancing herself within a tree, he or she can visually see the complex similarities between women and trees. Trees have been at the root of civilization, and so has been the role of women.

  

   

Tree Photo: The Student Conservation Assosictaion. Twisted. Accessed Feb 28, 2014. https://contest.thesca.org/photo/twisted

Woman in Yoga Move: Tatianna. Loving Fit. Accessed Feb 28, 2014. http://www.lovingfit.com/exercises-workouts/the-strength-beast-workout/