Sarah Jessica Parker
Olivia Palermo
Rachel Bilson
Evan Rachel Wood
Alexa Chung
Is it important to consider gender in relation to the history and
practice of fashion photography?
“The new darling of the catwalk is a man. The Serbian-born model of
female beauty is an androgynous lad of 19 from Melbourne.
With his long blond hair, huge almond-shaped eyes, Angelina Jolie lips
and a body as flat as a surfboard, Andrej Pejic is the toast of women’s high
fashion the world over. A beautiful teenager with the face of a girl and the
body of a boy, the perfect expression of beauty for these top fashion designers”(Platell
2011).
Gender is the most significant aspect of social identity. With reference
to transgendered models I will explain the evolution of gender in modernist
society and its inextricable link to fashion photography. With reference to the
historical depiction of femininity in the fashion industry I will show how the practice
of fashion photography changed gender roles in society. For the purpose of my argument I will
use the case of transgender model Andrej Pejic.
Pejic demonstrates the
dissolution of gender norms and his case explores gender difference. How these
differences have been presented by the practice of fashion photography is a
poignant issue for the industry as a whole. For the purpose of this essay I will also explain how gender differences presented
in fashion media significant impact of Femininity photography in normative
society
Fashion and representations of gender are significant symbols of
identity. Fashion photography has evolved throughout history concurrent with
the reforms in women’s gender roles.
During the 19th Century images of femininity coincided with
the dominant misconceptions of the time period. Women were sexually repressed
and images of conservative upper class women depicted and reinforced this
image. A basic premise of the dominant ideology concerning women was the belief
in fixed gender identities and in the existence of major differences between
men and women (Crane, 2000:page 16). Ideologies associated with the female
gender included: nurturing, weak and dependant. Due to the social structures at
the time, women were less independent than their male counterparts, hence
presentations of restrictive women’s fashions. Clothing in the 1900’s was notably heavy and took a great
deal of time and effort to maneuver. Even a woman’s undergarments were
restricted and earned the name ‘stays’.
Fashion photography reflected the styles and showed off the huge
headpieces, restricting corsets, large skirts in order to hide ones legs and
therefore cover up feminine sexuality. Diana Crane theorizes that gender is
communicated through social performances including certain styles of dress,
accessories makeup but the self is not inherently masculine or feminine. (Crane,
2000: page 17)
Towards the end of the twentieth Century, Photographers began to reject
‘claustrophobic feminity’. Helmut
Newton and Ellen Von Unwerth are two notable photographers who were at the
forefront of presenting this new identity rejecting the oppressive roles of
gender difference. Newton experimented with masculine themes whilst Unwerth
during the mid 80’s played with fashion
and sexuality in a far less
socially restrictive period. It was this period in the late twentieth century
that nineteenth century notions of fixed gender identities and intolerance of
gender ambiguity were gradually disappearing (Crane, 2000:page 17).
Women’s liberation brought with it its own sets of differences to the
ideals and norms of gender from the 19th century. It could be
determined women’s liberation movements in the 1970’s promulgated new gender
roles emphasizing power for women. As Newton presented in his work, women began
to consume masculine styles and documentation in the form of fashion photography
helped to spread a new androgynous style of shoulder pads and pant suits. “Women were often made masculine either in dress
or behavior, featured with boyish haircuts, trousers, tightly rolled black
umbrella and exaggerated shoulders. Entwistle notes the emphasis on pushing the
limits of gender masquerade in fashion photography (Butler).
Andre Pejic
is an undeniable force for change in the movement toward the fostering of
androgyny in fashion photography. Androgyny in fashion photography has become
more frequent after pop culture figures paving the way. Pejic claims “he has always been comfortable
playing both roles and even finds it sometimes difficult to get in touch with
his masculine side. He told the Telegraph: 'I’m comfortable doing both”
(Pejic as cited by Harding, 2011). Kylie Minogue and Lady Gaga are two such
artists who also play on androgynous culture. By including transgender
subcultures and homosexual communities into the realm modern identity, gender
differences are becoming marketable assets in the fashion industry. Crane states
advertisers have been forced to incorporate oppositional elements into their
advertising in order to hold the attention of increasingly sophisticated
consumers. Diverse images in fashion magazines associated with clothing styles
for women’s identities I the late twentieth century. (Crane, 2000: page 19).
Differences in sexual orientation, particularly androgynous figures have
significant impact on modernist social culture. In the 2011 edition of FHM’s
100 sexiest women of 2011 the controversial transgender model Andrej Pejic was voted in at number 98
(Sweney, 2011)
Fashion photography is a dominating force in representing and
disseminating gender norms. According to Thompson and Haytko (1997:16),
consumers use “fashion discourses to forge self defining social distinctions
and boundaries to construct narratives of personal history to interpret the
interpersonal dynamics of their social spheres, to understand their
relationship to consumer cultures, and to transform and… contest conventional
social categories (Crane, 2000: 13). While this may be true theorist have
undertaken various research to uncover who is directing the future of the
fashion industry and if said individuals have the right to determine gender
roles for women in the twenty-first century. It can be determined that as these
cultures have arisen from media exposure that fashion photographers are not
only documenting these changes but in turn encouraging them as well.
Platell attributes to redeveloped gender roles for women to an elite homosexual community of designers. She
critiques the trend towards diminished femininity in fashion models has been a
common practice in the twenty-first century and states “it was not a big step
for them to start replacing women with teenage boys”(Platell, 2011). This image
not only creates controversy for feminine hegemony, masculinity over history is portrayed with
power, strength and heterosexuality.
The idea
that female fashion models lack femininity has been repetitive issue in the
industry. Until the issue of transgender models, whose use should be heavily
criticised for unrealistically modeling clothes for the everyday woman, the
headlines shamed size zero models.
Fashion photography can have a significant impact on a social and cultural
level. Producing Gender images in fashion photography can set unattainable
standards and emphasize the void between fashion photography and the identity
of the modern woman. Gender codes defined by Fashion photography have been found to stimulate
a definitive gap between the body images
of young women in general and that idealized in the media. This was established
by a study comparing the anthropometric measurements of the idealized female
body in media targeted to men, women, or mixed gender audiences (Byrd-Benner, et all, 2003).
In conclusion it is evident gender norms presented in fashion media in the twenty first
century have had a significant impact on the feminine identity. In discussing
the use of transgender models in feminine projects we can locate the
significance of gender to fashion photography. Fashion photography and gender
work in duality to change the idea and portrayal of identity.
There is extensive debate over the fashion
industries disconnectedness from feminine identity in its entirety. In the
early 19th century females were too feminine and now they are
considered to masculine. However it is certain that changed hegemonic rules of
femininity and masculinity have caused a social and cultural shift in the
process of identity construction. Gender differences have evidently expanded to
include a multiplicity of
sexual sub cultures in fashion photography.
Related Articles found on Androgynous fashion
BYRD-BREDBENNER,
J.MURRAY . 2003. Topics in
Clinical Nutrition:
April 2003 -
Volume 18 - Issue 2 - p 117–129. Innovations
in Practice A
Comparison of the Anthropometric Measurements of Idealized Female Body Images
in Media Directed to Men, Women, and Mixed Gender Audiences.
Byrd‐Bredbenner, Carol PhD, RD, FADA; Murray, Jessica.
D.CRANE.
2000. Fashion
and its social agendas: class, gender, and identity in clothing. University
of Chicago Press. pages 13-18.
Accessed
online on the via Google Scholar on the 31st June 2011 via
E.HARDING. 2011. 'I would love to
do Playboy': Meet the MALE womenswear model causing a stir in the fashion
industry. Mail Online Article posted on the 24th February 2011
Accessed online
on the 31st June 2011 via-
D.CRANE.
2000. Fashion
and its social agendas: class, gender, and identity in clothing. University
of Chicago Press. pages 13-18.
Accessed
online on the via Google Scholar on the 31st June 2011 via
A.PLATELL .
2011. ‘Fashion's ultimate insult to women’: The latest way of demeaning real
women is a male model dressed as a girl. Daily Mail article posted on the 25th February 2011 accessed online on the 31st of June 2011 via-
M.SWENEY.
2011 FHM apologises after male
model appears in sexiest women list. Guardian.co.uk article posted on the 1 June 2011
accessed online on the 1st June 2011 via
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/jun/01/fhm-andrej-pejic-apology
