Towards the end of the term, I decided on a theme of which I wanted to explore further. One particular general theme that I was interested in was ‘women’. I wanted to look at how they are portrayed in life today, and perhaps compare it to how they were seen in the past.
The first art gallery that I visited was the Wallace Collection. This museum is well known for art from the 15th-19th Century, meaning that it would help to give me an idea as to how women were depicted during these times. The first painting which interested me most was an oil painting called “The Swing”, created in the 18th Century by an artist called Jean-Honoré Fragonard. Fragonard’s work is often said to convey “an atmosphere of intimacy and veiled eroticism[1]”, which suggested that there must be a deeper meaning to this painting that I did not fully understand when I first looked at it. At first glance, this painting appeared to be of a woman casually swinging within a woodland area. She appears to look extremely innocent, and this is emphasized by the white light that is shining down directly upon her. Another aspect of the painting which makes the whole atmosphere seems to be extremely innocent and child-like are the statues of young angels that are positioned in various places. As I began to look deeper at the painting, and finding out about the themes that run through Froganard’s work, I began to see things that I would not have noticed before. For example, the woman who is swinging is in fact not wearing any underwear, and it isn’t until I study the painting for longer that I notice there is a man sat within the bushes, who is looking directly under her dress! I was not sure whether this woman was aware of the fact that he was there. If she was not aware, then it shows that women were in fact quite modest about their sexuality, especially by the full bodied dress she is wearing, and the hat to disguise parts of her face. However, it wasn’t until I researched the painting later, and my entire opinion on how women used to act during these times changed. The woman was fully aware of the young man positioned beneath her (I later realised that she was directly staring at him). I also found out that the shoe she had casually flicked off her foot was “a symbol of the loss of virginity[2]”, and the man pushing her on the swing was in fact a bishop, said to be in a relationship with her! It seems to be that instead of women appearing to be quite innocent and not flaunting their sexuality, it is quite the opposite. The men are exploiting her, and she appears to be letting them. I later spotted that one of the statues of the angels is in fat slightly older then the two in the lower right corner. This angel looks to be around 12 years old, and is looking in the direction of the young man hidden in the bushes. This angel also appears to be holding a finger to his mouth, normally a sign used today to tell someone to be quiet. I was unable to find out whether this was deliberate or not, yet I feel that perhaps the angel is telling the woman that although she is allowing this man to peer through her dress, he is willing to keep it a secret, perhaps from her partner who is pushing her behind.
In conclusion, I feel that this painting suggests that although women used to wear extremely long and full dresses and partake in activities normally associated with the young (e.g swinging), there are in fact ulterior motives. This woman appears to be having some sort of affair, overall making my conceptions of women within this era to be quite provocative, even though they do it in a more discreet way.
The second gallery that I visited was the Timothy Taylor Gallery, where I saw the exhibition of Diane Arbus. Arbus is an American photographer and sixty of her photographs were on display in this gallery. “Arbus’s subject matter is people; adolescent couples, young children, sophisticated socialites, circus performers, nudists, eccentrics and transvestites[3]”, which I feel is what makes her photographs so interesting and diverse.
The second gallery that I visited was the Timothy Taylor Gallery, where I saw the exhibition of Diane Arbus. Arbus is an American photographer and sixty of her photographs were on display in this gallery. “Arbus’s subject matter is people; adolescent couples, young children, sophisticated socialites, circus performers, nudists, eccentrics and transvestites[3]”, which I feel is what makes her photographs so interesting and diverse.
The photograph that I decided to look at was ‘Teenage Couple on Hudson Street, NYC’, 1963. It is a photograph of a couple, and I decided to look at this particular photograph to explore my theme of women and how they are viewed in society. In this case, I was looking at how she was with her, I assume to be, boyfriend. As Arbus’ photographs are normally captured in the moment, it gives a true insight into how they really are. In this photograph, the girl appears to be quite comfortable in her boyfriend’s presence. He has a protective arm around her and they are both making physical contact with each other. The clothes that the girl is wearing suggest that she doesn’t need to use her body to attract the attention of the opposite sex, unlike the lady in the ‘The Swing’. This could be because she is still quite young, and has not yet become aware of her body. However, the year that this photograph was taken in was a time where people would often be free and individual; not afraid to do what they want to do. If this woman wanted to user her body to attract his attention, I’m sure she would have.
The last gallery that I visited was the Portrait Gallery, to view the BP Portrait Award 2009. It was here that I came across the painting ‘Agnes’ by Natalie Holland. This painting featured a 10 year old girl, sitting in a red hooded jumper and in front of a blue background. She is holding her blonde her close to her chest and looking directly at the viewer.
I was first drawn to this painting because of the clear contrast within it. The colours stood out and caught my eye almost instantly. After it has caught my attention, I then decided to research further into it. I found out that Holland wanted “to capture the contrast between the girl’s appearance, saying ‘she looks like a princess from a Nordic fairy tale’, and her mischievous and feisty personality[4]”. At first, you do not assume that the girl has a “feisty personality”, yet it isn’t until you look closer that you realise the slight mischievous expression on her face. This shows that appearance can have an extraordinary effect on how you first see someone.
This painting was created in 2009, which gives a clear representation of how women are today. Although the girl features in this painting is in fact only 10 years old, it appears that she is actually aware of how to use her body and manipulate people into thinking something else. She is seen holding her blonde her up closely up against her chest, which in some cases could be seen as being some sort of barrier. However, the mischievous smirk on her face makes me feel that she is in fact using her hair to be quite seductive, and so therefore making this girl similar to the woman in ‘The Swing’. She uses her body and sexuality to get attention from the opposite sex, yet the way she does it is extremely discreet.
In conclusion, I feel that it is difficult to make a general assumption on how all women are seen in society. However, I feel that it is easy to say that all women at some point of their lives do use their bodies to attract attention, yet this normally isn’t until you become much older and more aware of people around you. ‘Agnes’ may appear to be holding her hair in quite a seductive way, yet I feel that she is still too young and is probably just a bit playful. As you get older, like the woman in ‘The Swing’, you are more aware of your body and it is completely your decision as to how you wish to use it.
