2. Visual culture; the representation of
women in magazines.
In this project I want explore women and how they are visually represented in
magazines. I want to understand how the ‘ideal’ stereotypical is created. I also want
to investigate and show examples of how editing software have resulted in the
stereotypical ideal woman society has formed.
People depend on magazines as a source of information, education and
entertainment. It is prominently known for its bold criticism.
4. Theorists arguments of magazines…
Goldman (1992) suggests that advertising in magazines is a main social and
economic institution that pursues to uphold cultural hegemony by providing us
socially constructed ways of seeing and making sense of society.
Carilli and Campbell (2005) argue women play a crucial role in advertising, it
encourages women to see themselves as ‘merchandises’, as an object. This leads to
the fact that women are seen in magazines as a sexual objectification meaning they
are shown as a sex object for men. Sexual objectification is ‘achieved by exploiting
their sexuality, or by fragmenting the female body into eroticized zones such as hair,
face, legs, breasts, etc (p. 3).
5. Are women exploited in magazines?
Mills (1995) reminds us that the fragmentation of exposing women’s bodies has two
effects; 1. Body becomes “depersonalized”, objectified and reduced to its parts. 2. As
the female model in the imagery cannot be seen as a “unified conscious living being,
the scene cannot be focalized from her perspective” (Mills, 1995 p. 172). This
expresses that the female is objectified for “the male gaze”.
Kuhn (1985) argues that this cultural perceptive of a women’s body as a sex object has
originated from “whenever we look at painted, drawn, sculpted or photographed
images of women, it is important for us to remind ourselves that images of women
have traditionally been the province and property of men” (p. 10-11).
“The male gaze shown in photographic images is an extension of how men see
women in the streets” (Kuhn 1985).
6. Male Gaze
The main problem with “the male gaze” is that yes it is natural for men to gaze at
women but however they “assess, judge and make advances on the basis of
these visual impressions” (p. 75).
This results in the patriarchal culture that male’s “will feast his eyes on any female
object that catches his fancy”, this therefore pressures women to “beautify
themselves, make themselves all the more desirable and “siren like” to catch
the men’s attention” (Carilli and Campbell (2005) p. 4).
7. Why are women self-conscious?
Carilli and Campbell (2005) state that feminist’s media critics argue that women’s self-
consciousness is created through the complex interaction between women and the media
(reading magazines). (p. 5).
Keohance and Gelpi (1982), suggests a female body is an object of another’s attention in
the media (meaning men).
Simone de Beauvoir (1974) females become the sex object as the power, when the male
is the gazer and female the one gazed at.
Berger (1972) believes a women portrays herself and turns herself into the object to be
surveyed by the male “an object of vision: a sight.”
8. Are women exploited for male pleasure?
Mulvey (1975) argues that a women is styled accordingly to a male’s sexual pleasing;
results in the male being active and female as being passive. “Using another person
as an object of sexual stimulation through sight” primary driving force behind the ‘Male
Gaze’ theory (p.10).
These three factors by Mulvey (1975) convey the uneven power relations between
imagery of men and women in magazines. It replicates their status in society.
1. The look of camera when situation is being shot.
2. Gaze, look of male characters in screen that makes the women the object.
3. The look or gaze of audience that imitates the first two look factors.
Mulvey argues, the spectator is not necessarily male but “masculine”, who adopts a
masculine subjectivity or subject position while viewing women.
9. Both Berger (1972) and Mulvey (1975) argue that women are the object of gaze
opposed to the subject. “Men act women appear – men look at women, while
women watch themselves being looked at” (Berger (1972) p.47)
“Women are a defined as a code to the viewer to make sense of social
behaviour” (Carilli and Campbell (2005) p. 6)
Macdonald (1995) states advertising messages constantly present women in
narcissistic poses, it develops women into a shrine.
10. How magazines conveys women as
objects…
“solely there for male enjoyment”- Carilli and Campbell (2005) p.7) – contours of
her body, stimulating clothing, camera angles of body parts, attractive women, young,
slim, epitome of beauty, glorifying complexion, alluring smile, delicate hand gesture.
“Sexual portrayals of women in advertisements that convey invidious
message” of women.(Carilli and Campbell (2005) p.7). Unfair that women are
visually represented as a sex subject “goal in life to either catch a man or obtain her
husband’s approval.
11. Magazine examples:
Eva Herzigova in Wonderbra's 1994 advert “Hello Boys” this advert appeared in
magazines, it was one of the most well-known and sensational, attracting criticism that
it was demeaning to women.
As can see the women as the
sex object, featuring on certain
body features to allure men to
approve off as the ideal
women. This expresses an
object for male pleasure.
12. Kim Kardashian Paper Magazine advertisement
As you can see altering images is also altering our minds.
What we perceive and what Kim Kardashian actually looks like
is two very different effects.
13. Photoshop example:
This is an image of a women advertised in magazines that has been edited to
a false perception, would we know her if she walked past us?
No, because it is not actually her
anymore. It is a digitally edited
representation of her.
14. magazines problems:
False imagery is produced to the public
Women feel pressure to look like the ideal “women” by exposing the perfection of ideal
beauty; slim, flawless, young female models proposed
Women are fabricated and exploited
Can cause a lack of self-confidence and anxiety for women in society
Media like most institutions is male dominated, position of power and authority
Consumers are misled
Link to female eating disorders
“Theorists claim that women believe that if they do not conform this ideal women
they are not successful and are therefore useless”.
15. Effects exploiting women can cause…
National Eating Disorder Association, 2010, I found that women’s bodies across the media spectrum have
shrunk, dramatically in the last three decades rates of eating disorders have increased.
Tripling for college-age women from late 1980’s to 1993 and
rising from then to 4% suffering with bulimia.
119% increase of the children omitted to hospital due to eating
disorders between 1999 and 2006, while vast majority was
females.
(American Academy of Paediatrics, 2010).
This can be due to the cause of living in an environment where
weight and thinness is emphasized through media. It can cause a
fear in people of becoming the imperfect women and attaining
the cultural body ideal as portrayed in the media.
(BR, Admin, 2014).
16. Practice
I want to challenge how the media represent women through a series of
my own photography. I want to take you on an insightful process that may
provoke a new perception for you as consumers of magazines.
Raise of this issue is again, gender representation, the visual culture and
representation of women in magazines, how and why they are exploited.
I choose edited imagery to enhance my hypothesis as I believe this is the
best way to articulate exactly how women are exploited and perceived.
18. Image #1 – 2 in 1 women
By conveying a digital image of a women
inserted in a realistic image of a women
is the message I want create.
As we can see Photoshop illustrates
how unrealistic images of women can be
represented.
19. Image #2 – A man’s gaze
Illustrating that the representation of women comes solely down to
how a man views them.
20. Image #3 - Pressure
Illustrating the pressure women feel from what they see in
magazines to what they see in the mirror.
21. Hypothesis outline…
1. My Problem – Questions related to new media arts practice and cultural and social practices.
2. My Context – to take people on an insightful process and researching previous knowledge
3. Methods I will use to gather statistics – Sample survey to gain quantifiable answers to closed-
ended questions and forced choice or multiple choice answers.
In-depth interviews, cultural knowledge, beliefs, answers to open-ended questions.
4. Outcomes, who is my hypothesis useful to – directed solely to consumers of magazines and
how they are misled. It is for them to understand that what they are preserving is untrue,
meaning they should and cannot visually trust imagery within magazines. Seek as a voice of
women in society.
With research and practice I have established the ongoing exploitation of women in magazines.
