“…what is striking about contemporary discourses on beauty is that they tend not only to associate the beautiful with the feminine and the sublime with the masculine, but to read and reevaluate their historical competition through the lens of historical feminism.”
Alberro, A. (2004; 38)
Martha Rosler
“Even in the beginning, you could not make such generalizations about my work, since I was in fact a painter and part-time documentary photographer. But I will grant you that a lot of my work between the mid-1960s through the mid-1970s overtly addressed women and their representations. Although that is not always the first thing you see when you look at my work, I maintain that all my work is feminist, in that it insists on returning our attention to the social context of the work’s production and reception.”
Rosler, M. [in] Hughes, B. (2013)
I have looked briefly at the works of Martha Rosler in the past, however I feel she is very relevant in reflection to my work last module (on idealised beauty standards of women), as well as the work being made during this module. Rosler’s describes her work made between the mid-60s and mid-70s as being about representation of women, and whilst most of the images in her series Body Beautiful or Beauty Knows No Pain (1966-1972), depicts representation of idealised beauty via the lens of makeup, as seen in Figure 1, however other images with the series such as Figure 2 Hot Meat depicts mundane domestic settings, in this case a cooker, collaging on sexualised imagery of a women’s bust and these images form a commentary and representation on misogyny, how women are seen as inferior, as objects for pleasure and domestic chores.
Project Development
“Misogynist rhetoric has been increasing in frequency and violence, especially since 2016. It has also changed in tone and type. Back in 2011, men’s rights activists were focusing on issues like male mental health or a perceived bias against men in family law. Nowadays, they focus on feelings of deprivation (like being “kissless” or “involuntarily celebate”) and on flipping feminist narratives to suit their own interests (I’m not oppressing you, you’re oppressing me!).”
Ellis, E.G. (2019)
Carrying on from last week I have been taking images in my kitchen set, using quotes I have sourced from the internet either via searching for specific phrases on Twitter and other social media sites, or from forums such as r/blatantmisogyny, or End Online Misogyny which provides screengrabs of ‘obvious’ misogyny others have found or been on the receiving end of on the web. Of the two images I produced this week I feel Figure 3 is significantly stronger image than Figure 4, as Figure 4 is too figurative, in your face and less visually intriguing due to the flat lay composition.
This week I had a 1-2-1 tutorial with Colin, he agreed with my opinion that Figure 4 didn’t work as well as Figure 3 or last week’s image, in that the rationale and dark humour wasn’t as functional, the usage of the doll redefining it. I was advised that I could include set building planning and sketches into my WIPP and/or CRJ, to showcase my process and provide receipts on how I’ve been making these (unfortunately I forgot to take detailed photos of how I made some objects, though for both my bathroom and elements in my kitchen have been inspired by Fun_and_Craft on Youtube), and that it would be worthwhile for me to seek more opinions on my current WIPP either via other tutors or via social media. I stumbled across a NewStatesman article from 2013, and despite it being 7 years old the following quote resonates my own feelings around the rise of online misogyny:
“And so we stay silent as misogyny becomes normalised. We’re told to shut up and accept that abuse of this vicious and targeted kind just happens and we’d better get used to it.”
Penny, L. (2013)
References
Figures
Figure 1 Rosler, M. (ca. 1972) Cargo Cult from the series Body Beautiful, or Beauty Knows No Pain (1966-1972) [Online] Available from: http://www.martharosler.net/body-beautiful-or-beauty-knows-no-pain-carousel [Accessed 18/10/2020]
Figure 2 Rosler, M. (1966-1972) Hot Meat, from the series Body Beautiful, or Beauty Knows No Pain. [Online] Available from: https://news.artnet.com/art-world/q-amp-a-with-artist-martha-rosler-49391 [Accessed 19/10/2020]
Figure 3 Murray, J. (October 2020) Come collect your dishwasher. She’s faulty.
Figure 4 Murray, J. (October 2020) Certified as a virgin.
Bibliography
Alberro, A. (2004) Beauty Knows No Pain. [IN] Art Journal Vol.63, no 2. Summer 2004. [Online] Available from: http://www.columbia.edu/cu/arthistory/faculty/Alberro/2004-Beauty-Knows-No-Pain.pdf [Accessed 18/10/2020]
Craftiness is not Optional (2018) Modern Dollhouse: Kids Rooms. [Online] Available from: https://www.craftinessisnotoptional.com/2018/05/modern-dollhouse-makeover-kids-rooms.html [Accessed 18/10/2020]
Ellis, E.G. (2019) Wired: Reddit’s ‘Manosphere’ and the Challenge of Quantifying Hate. [Online] Available from: https://www.wired.com/story/misogyny-reddit-research/ [Accessed 20/10/2020]
Fun_and_Craft (2018) DIY miniature Living Room (working fireplace). [Online] Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i091NUq1AXE [Accessed 18/10/2020]
Fun_and_Craft (2020) DIY Miniature Bathroom. [Online] Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrTk3bkziBs [Accessed 18/10/2020]
Fun_and_Craft (2020) DIY: Modern Miniature Kitchen. [Online] Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHe42-yy9tE [Accessed 18/10/2020]
Penny, L. (2013) NewStatesman: Laurie Penny on web misogyny: It’s time to end the culture of online misogyny. [Online] Available from: https://www.newstatesman.com/laurie-penny/2013/01/laurie-penny-its-time-end-culture-online-misogyny [Accessed 21/10/2020]
Plastically Perfect (2019) DIY Pallet Couch. [Online] Available from: https://www.plasticallyperfect.com/home/barbie-playscale-decor-diorama-diy-pallet-couch-nov-2019 [Accessed 18/10/2020]
Pinterest (2015-) End Online Misogyny. [Online] Available from: https://www.pinterest.co.uk/emisogyny/_saved/ [Accessed 19/10/2020]
Reddit (2020) Blatant Misogyny. [Online] Available from: https://www.reddit.com/r/BlatantMisogyny/ [Accessed 19/10/2020]
Rosler, M. [in] Hughes, B. (2013) Artsy: Q&A with Artist Martha Rosler. [Online] Available from: https://news.artnet.com/art-world/q-amp-a-with-artist-martha-rosler-49391 [Accessed 19/10/2020]
The Created Home (2019) DIY Modern Doll House Furniture. [Online] Available from: https://thecreatedhome.com/diy-modern-doll-house-furniture/ [Accessed 18/10/2020]
Jasmine Murray Photography 