"WOMAN" (Spring 2016)
As I began my concentration, I wanted viewers to see an explicit message in my photos. In Image 2, the girls are labeled with red words to highlight the objectification women face in our society, and in Image 3, I shot the direct comparison between wages women and men face in the workplace. However, as my concentration progressed, I realized I wanted my audience to absorb the photo and interpret their own meanings so they could personally relate to the photos (Images 7-11). Image 8 has subtle bruises that implicate the physical pain women face in set clothing expectations, such as wearing heels to fancy events. In Image 11, I want to leave the viewer wondering whose arms are wrapped around her, representing the systemic and widespread oppression women face throughout our society. In order to capture the raw emotion of women’s struggles, I chose subjects who personally experienced these forms of oppression, particularly Images 4, 6 and 9. This culminated in my final photo, titled “Words.” I took simple portraits of women and had them write across the photo, recalling an offensive or diminishing phrase once directed at them. Collectively, these images exemplify the universal and widespread challenges faced by ALL women, regardless of age, race, or sexuality.
