The politics of gender words

In my critique today we were talking about the difference between gender issues and feminism. I think that the reason I am loathe to get rid of the word 'feminism' from my project, or from thinking about my project, is the vast history and the brave contributions of the women who have braved the waters of feminism. I also think that there would be no gender politics had feminism not happened, because it opened up the dialogue that everyone should be equal in all fields.
There is a cultural notion of what feminism is, and that is not always positive. I find that if more people who were into 'gender politics' could acknowledge that feminism gave them the freedom to be into gender politics it would be more socially acceptable as a label and as a way of life.

Hey honey, take a walk on the wild side.

Working hard to catch up to myself. My thoughts are running faster than my body can work! Nervous about my thesis review Friday, but i'm sure i'll get a lot of good feedback! 

I am diving into sewing and creating some wearable objects that communicate people's feelings towards  feminism. I am really interested right now in how men feel and think about feminism. I set up a facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/carmensmiththesis , to get some views on some questions about feminism. Please go there and answer the questions i've posted! The answer I think is really cool was answering the question: "I am a feminist and... it doesn't make me any less of a man". 

Getting public feedback on this topic has been interesting. There is an interesting disparity between different ages of women and men. 

This is what i've been looking at this past week or so, lots of internet time. 

Kate Lacour

Anatomical illustrations

Carlos Nicanor

Sculpture

James Reads

Surreal drawings

Female film directors

Willy Verginer

Figurative sculpture

Suzanne Lacy

Feminist performance in brooklyn

Andrea Kowch

Paintings of women in midwestern landscapes. 

Thais Ueda

Paintings and stuff. 

Korean sculpture

Rudt Peters

Male genitals!

Dru Lindsey Patrick

Power portraits

Jessica Todd

Wearable objects

Feminist Art Gallery, "FAG"

Craft In America, Forge

Logan Zillmer

Surrealist photography 

The Mens Rights Movement

This makes me ill, but is interesting from a psychology of crazies point of view. 

Man Boobz

"Misogyny, I mock it"

Getting Over Girl Hate

Guerrilla girl

Healthy? What does that mean?

I should have done my project about my health. I can't seem to get back to level of healthiness since this summer. Was supposed to have a relaxing weekend working on my paper and reading but ended up with the flu, miserable and watching day time television at my grandmother's in Sandusky, Ohio.
So, taking tomorrow to get home and hopefully get back to a base of health, and then jumping back in for the third time this this semester. Crossing my fingers that this doesn't happen again, and I can complete this semester strong and get a lot of work done.

Thinking about titles, and other things.

http://elizabethbarton.blogspot.com/2013/10/the-importance-of-being-titled.html
An interesting blog about the importance of titles by master quilter Elizabeth Barton!

We were talking about titles in class today with Tamara Tweel, which got me thinking. I love titling my work. It's almost my favorite part of making something. When it's coming together, I have thoughts about it, whether to make it apparent what exactly I am thinking with the piece, or hide my intentions, or just go with the ever classic 'untitled' and let the public translate for themselves. I usually over think titles, and under think presentation. It's something i need to work on!

Reading so much about femininity and feminism, and everything that has gone into culture to bring women to where we are today, I am reminded of my luck. Reading the book The Beauty Myth by Naomi Wolf, written in the 90's but still very relevant, I can't help but think about relationships I have had in the past, where I would try so hard to be thin and made up and beautiful. It wasn't for me that I was doing these things, and I remember obsessing and stressing. I count myself lucky that today I am in a relationship where when I dress up, I do it for myself, and when I lost weight, I do it for myself. I am lucky enough to be in a supportive and loving relationship.

I know this blog is about art but I just thought i'd share what my research has got me thinking about today!

Thesis proposal, revised

Here is my revised thesis proposal, my work has taken a sudden left turn!

Embroidery, before the Renaissance, was a job for both sexes. Men and women working in workshops produced the fine garments and banners that now hang in museums. Around the Renaissance, embroidery became a talent of upper class women and trickled down to the middle classes. Embroidery became a sign of an educated and refined woman, one who has the patience, concentration and fine hand to produce beautiful decorative textiles. For the upper class women, these were given as favours to suitors, as gifts to friends, or to the church. For middle class women, their embroidered objects were used in the house as napkins, hankies, sheets and clothing. Embroidery has a rich feminine history, and continues to the subversive embroidery that is used today in art. I plan to use embroidery to explore what it is to be a woman and a feminist in today’s world.

As a base for this conversation I am using objects that are specifically attached to femininity. These could include feminine hygiene pads, tampons, lipstick, eye shadow, nail polish, dresses or skirts and bras. I acknowledge that in certain situations men use these items but, through a survey of friends, I have come to the conclusion that they are still attached strongly to femininity. I will then embroider these objects with words or patterns to emphasize their connection to the feminine sphere.

I would like to bring forth a conversation about why the words ‘feminist’ and ‘feminism’ are negative words for a majority of the women in my generation, and maybe open up a channel for these women to investigate feminist language and content. I also want to have a conversation with myself about what femininity means to me. It has always been something I was uncomfortable with, and I’d like to confront that and start to understand why. 

The meaning of feminine

This week I am exploring what Feminine means, what decoration means, and what objects are associated with feminism in the eyes of a cross-section of my peers.
I am also exploring why feminist is a negative word in the current generation, and what that means for women in today's world and in the future.
Work in the studio has been productive if a little difficult this week. Pieces have been developing but I have been second guessing myself a lot. Looking forward to my critique to get some feedback on what is working and what isn't. Been trying to get some pieces semi-done or at lease mock-ups for critique, so that I can show everyone what I have been working on.

Here is what I have been looking at this week:
Bart Hess
I know i've posted his work before but it's still amazing

Paolo Uberti
Surrealist artwork. Yummy.

Interesting jewelry and fashion

Overcoming impostor syndrome
An article about 'impostor syndrome', which is when women over compensate at their jobs because they feel inferior to the men around them. It's interesting but I don't know if I agree with all of it.

Alessandro Puccinelli
Beautiful photography

This one is just fun, really intricately carved pumpkins

Lyan de Jesus
Very detailed and deco pieces

Antibiotic city

This week i've been working through the first part of my actual work, while thinking ahead to what's coming next. I dyed 20 yds. of fabric in my kitchen in preparation for the next step! Thinking about what exactly i'm going to do has lead to a lot of questions, and a sneaking suspicion I need to rewrite my thesis proposal. I've been exploring questions of feminism and how feminist theory permeates culture. Also why feminist seems to be such a dirty world in today's generations. I started this project exploring the decorative in everyday objects, and chose the most interesting object, feminine hygiene pads. This led to all of this feminist discussion that is going on in my head. I want to work with the form of the feminine hygiene pad and decoration to express my ideas.

Artists and articles from this week:

Doris Salcedo, Rose Shroud

Broken tampon memorial fund

Toni Demuro

Abused Godesses campaign

Christian Zucconi

This is graphic

Tommy Kha

Nature photos

Morgan Herrin

Mitchell Rose

Bejeweled skulls

Feminism brand problem?