Chosen 3 artifacts

My chosen artifacts are Chosen artifact is Clothing Lines:

Emporio Armani including David Beckham (looking like how a women would have been painted) 

Abercrombie and Fitch advert the images used are either sepia or black and white which is like old fashion photography.

My second chosen artifact is Aftershave:
I have chosen the Dolce & Gabbana advert

My third chosen artifact is electrical appliances:

Can you believe this is an advert for a vacuum, this is definitely a perfect example of sexualisation using men in advertising. 

My Essay Structure

My Questions..
How have representations of men in advertising since 1980's mirrored that of the representation of women since the 1950's?

• What is the sexualisation?
• Introductions on subject
• Consider my three artifacts
• The history and comparisons
• Meanings 
• My opinions
• Who this sort of advertising affects and how?
• Conclusion

Men used in Hollister advertising looking overtly sexual

 This male is clearly led down, with 'sexy looking eyes' looking directly at the camera. He arms are in such a sexual position- one rustling the hair and the other around his neck. As the image is from chest up you can see that he doesn't have a top on.

This male model is led against a tree, with his arm around the back of his neck. He has quite a 'tight' looking body however again this model is not overly muscular. He is smiling which you don't seem to see in advertising. He is also slightly pulling at the side of his shorts to give an impression that after the shot he pulled them down?

His male model clearly has a very impressive body that is very toned. His swim shorts are very low which could make people think how low? You cannot see the models face as it is not in the shot, why have they left his face out? Are people only interested in the body? It also has a full view of the upper body as there is no arms or clothing to distract from the body, it almost seems very open.

 This males hands are rustling through his hair, this is deemed to be a sexy 'move'. He is smiling as is the one above. The model has very low trousers to reveal all.

This model is led very open- both arms behind his head and his legs spread apart and one up. He has a t-shirt around his neck however it is not on properly but revealing enough of the body. 
















Interesting when I typed in Hollister advertising (which is very much a young surfer clothing range) it suggested that I wanted to look at Abercrombie and Fitch's advertising perhaps as there advertising is very similar but it is interesting as there clothing lines are very different !

Men used in Abercrombie and Fitch advertising looking overtly sexual

Abercrombie and Fitch adverts:

Abercrombie and Fitch sells a lot of surfer style clothing, underwear, accessories and smellies. They are a well known and trendy brand. When buying a product the items go into on of the bags- either a female bag or a male bag both images I personally find rather revealing for simply a carrier bag if I am honest! 

These images above I managed to find of just a small selection of there adverts containing males. I think this type of marketing is clearly directed at the teenage girl age range.

The males used in these adverts all seem to be quite young. (mid 20's maybe)

The guys are positioned in very sexual ways or looking overtly sexual:

For example the first advert: His arms are behind his back and he is really showing off his upper boys and extending it by stretching it with his arms. He has a choppy looking hair cut with the messy look and he seems to be looking off the shot to the left but in a mysterious sexy way which gives the illusion that he is hiding something. 

Second advert: This is overtly sexual! He is doing a very typical womanly pose, rustling the hair and dragging it backwards and lifting the top to reveal some body but not all, so again its that whole sense of mystery and being a bit secret. It's actually quite a dark images also with only a selective light. (very much like there stores actually, perhaps thats why they have used black and white imagery)

Third advert: So this advert is purely focused on the males body this is obvious as there is no head in the frame. Again a typical tight looking body and arms but not overly muscular arms. I think its a very sexual position as he is leaning against a tree with one hand pulling the side of his trousers down (very far many I add) and the other hand resting away from the body. But yes very low jeans.
Fourth advert: The advert isn't necessarily overly sexual however the two men have there full top parts of their bodies out, it doesn't really scream what they products they are trying to advertise apart from the t-shirts barely visible slung over their shoulders but look how low there jeans are!!
Very low, so low that the male on the right hand side looks like he is trying to pull them up. 

Men used in advertising looking overtly sexual

This Davidoff advert is very much what I am thinking about but in a picture.

He actor is shown looking dripping wet like something out of Baywatch, he is shown with very blue water with a shimmer on the top, I think this gives sense of a hot country.

He has facial hair which is very sort of rugged looking which some women find very attractive. He also has quite long floating hair and it looks like it has been swept back or pulled over his head once he has got out of the water. By looking at this advert he is a very well toned guy with a tight stomach however he doesn't look very muscular around the arms, which I find interesting! As you can only see him from his waist up you can only see what looks like the top of a pair of shorts however he clearly isn't wearing anything on the upper half of his body. He isn't looking at the camera he is looking off at an angle which perhaps this shows no contact?

This advert is for Calvin Klein. It is a black and white image similar to the famous David Beckham advert (see below). He is looking off the shot same as the advert above so perhaps not to make it seem like eye contact is being made?
This male in this advert is not afraid to show flesh as he only has a very small tight pair of briefs on. His hair is swept back and appears to be quite long actually. He is looking out of the frame and not directly at the person looking at the advert perhaps to show longing? Again he is a well toned male however he is also not big or bulky, the advertisers obviously have a clear depiction to what women find attractive. Most of this males body is out on display.






This is a very famous advert for Emporio Armani as the character is David Beckham. He is led in a typical seductive position with this legs spread apart looking directly at the viewer making full eye contact. He is also led with his arm slightly apart to give the 'come on girls' look to the way he is led. His hair is very short in this advert he still has the very manly facial hair that you can just about see as the image is black and white. I think they have used black and white as it gives a sense of secrecy and you can really the tones of his muscles. He is showing a typical look of tight white briefs (leaving not much to the imagination) and his shirt looks like it is falling of him.

This advert is for an aftershave called Light Blue by Dolce and Gabbana. There are two sides to this as there is an advert including just a female and this advert including a male. This is very clever as it is targeting both the audiences. He is led down on a boat in a  sunny beautiful location. His body is in full view, wearing rather a revealing piece of swim wear. His body is quite tight and built and looks quite oily which in affect works with the surroundings of the advert. The way he is positioned is very much like 'come and get me ladies' with his arm casually behind his head and the top of his legs in the shot slightly spread apart.

This advert is for a Calvin Klein aftershave called 'MEN'. The male             used in this advert has been shot straight on and he is looking directly at the camera and audience. This is a black and white image which seems to be quite effective in seductive images. He has got quite a tight stomach and pecks which meets the standard look that the advertisers seem to be going for. He has no facial hair or not particularly long hair either. He isn't massively in a sexual position as he is stood up but it has got the similar looks about it as the other ones.

 Another Davidoff advert for an aftershave. These two images one of a female and one of a male. This is interesting to see them together as I can make comparison as how a male can now be seen as a sexual object not just a female. They both have very similar looking shots, both wet in water, showing they don't have hardly any clothes on due to the way the picture has been taken. The male has the 'rugged' look with quite a lot of facial hair. He is wet, which can be quite appealing to some and he has longish wet hair.

 This is another famous advert for Emporio Armani with the main aspect being David Beckham. Beckhams' hair is greeced to some side of his head, and I think this could be a reference point to old fashion times? He is shown clinging to a rope, sort of like this hands have been tied to it, one arm up and one arm down. He is showing all his 'hidden' tattoos so perhaps that would have people talking about this advert. Becks is wearing slightly larger briefs however you only get to see the top part of the parts. Looking sexually through tough, hard man eyes at the camera with the full top half of his body showing.

Another Calvin Klein underwear advert. Its a black and white image, his body looks quite shinny. He is looking down which seems unusual. Perhaps he is supposed to be checking out his own body or maybe he is unhappy with it? Very tight undergarment which are actually positioned rather low which I hadn't noticed before. I wouldn't say this was a massively sexual picture however he is very much naked.

This is an overtly sexual looking image. This is an advert for Marc Jacobs for the aftershave 'BANG'.  There is one guy led down with this legs spread apart holding the bottle of aftershave only just covering his private regions. He doesn't have a hairy chest which coming to think of it none of them do. He has many tattoos which perhaps could make the mind wonder. Facial hair, quite dark. Tanned looking and yet again this sort of shinny, geercy look.

 Im guessing this is for a product or company called Crave, although it is not a leading brand the male in the advert looks overtly sexual. The is lent back with both arms above his head. But mainly he has the zip on his trousers undone!! Again a none hairy chest and it isn't shinny however it has the very typical look that all the rest do.












These three images I looked at as they are the female dominating the male!




In the top one the women who happens to be Jennifer Lopez kneeling on a males back, interestingly she is looking at the camera however he isn't. They both look overtly sexy, as she is in a short tight dress/skirt and he doesn't have a top on and has all the messy hair ect. However I feel it is like he is being dominated.

Can you believe this advert is actually for a vacuum company? This seems very inappropriate. The male as you can see is pretty much wearing nothing and has been tied to the lead of the vacuum. You can see his reflection in the mirror and he has the tight body and six back as in all the others. However with the female you can only see her heels you don't get to see her face.

I am not sure what advert this is for but again its about the women dominating the males as they are leads which is obviously how you would take your dog out on a walk!!

Wednesday 5th January

Consuming Passisons

Consuming- We live in a consumer culture

The SS Great Britain was the start of manipulating materials

1872 Claude Monet, transporting materials to enable him to work outside. A change in the mobility of paints helped work to be produced as its not confined in the area of a studio.

"Difference" changing the art world

Karl Marx 1818-1883

Capitalism

Acquisition of money

Economic system

Revolutionised the 'classes' example the classes where then not just separated into rich and poor

Free-market than a controlled market

Fetishisation

'Exchange value' of a commodity is separate to its 'use value'

This results in 'alienation of the workers' example paying the Chinese not very much, health and safety is also poor

Renoir 1881 painting of leisure showed a time in which the middle/richer class could enjoy themselves

Selferedges where the first shop to have toilets this meant that you could spend a day at the shops instead of only a short period of time as people needed to stay close to home just in case they needed the toilet. 

Charles Frederick Worth 1895 was the first o'couture designer. Buying fashion in an expensive way

"Real" or true needs vs. "false" need as there must need it and you don't really need it. Waste plays a great issue as things on the shelves don't always sell in time for the new products to be shelved... so what happens to the items that didn't sell ??

Standardisation

Democratising society, all people can do what they want and they are not divided by classes.

Pseudo-individualisation- you put your mark onto something, we want to individualise ourselves instead of having fashion from the shelf. Such as our personalised Nike trainer. For example we would have our name on it, choose the colour and laces ect however the Nike tick will still be very much visual.. so is it really making it personal?

The Global Village- are you "Real?"

Familiar Values- We live a postmodern, postindustrial society

Advances in transport- is the world 'Shrinking' due to this technology?

We can travel safely and in a short space of time 

Even though there is now more people in the World than ever before we are part of what Marshall Mcluhan called a "global village"

Artists where collaborating World Wide via Internet ect even though they where miles away

Global Village has benefits- Two cultures meet and produce different cultures and produce creative and innovative and interesting forms of work

"Chinoiserie"- refers to China's tradition. Theoretical

"Japonisme" 1870's. Exotic, impact of oriental things that haven't been seen before

Before mid 1880's Japan was keeping themselves very much to themselves from the rest of the world. Japonisme used depth, sculpture looking work 3D looking and the sense of real elements of form.

Chinese and Japanese work in the way of a scroll

"Rediscovery" of Japanese art and design as trade was merged with the Western World. They used blocks, stylisation. This style of work impacted on impressionism. Oriental, exotic. However very much based on traditional values.

Japanese graphics commanised. The way that people where stylised was hugely influenced by the Westernised animation such as Mulan.

The risk of loosing individuality. New an innovative thinking however there is a bad side of uniformity.

Mac Donald's: Its not surprising, not unique, not individual, you know exactly what your getting where ever you are. No matter where you are in the world if you see a Mac Donald's sign they always taste the same. The fast food industry is: Efficient, predictable, controlled and standardised. 

"Cultural Imperialism"

Dominant: Not just visual but what they represent. How we feel about cultural demonstration ideology= Body of ideas or beliefs

Hegemony

A dominant view point

Hussein Chalayaris

Conceptual fashion designer not about the garment but what the garment is associated with.

Communicate World Wide. Its immediate. Images, messages, videos ect.

We think we 'know' and 'understand' whats happening. When we 'stop' seeing these images does it mean they have stopped? And there's no issue in that place anymore just because its not headline news? The pace of what we see and how quickly they move onto something else is astonishing. The power of imagery.

Hegemony. Confusing what we see to what is real and 'reality'

'Hegemony"=dominant influence we accept national stereotypes and our assumptions. Cliche

We understand cliches

Edward said "Orientalism" and "Culture & Imperialism" Interested about how people are seen as the are 'surposed' to be. Question the assumed objectivity of the researcher.

The concept of the 'Other' is key to our understanding of ourselves and other people. We might not no who we are but we know who we are not.

You are "other" than normal if you don't meet a certain criteria.

Symbolic value is relational and arbitrary pink=feminine and blue=masculine

"False needs" are created by capitalism and perpetuated by the culture industry 

"Simulacra" are hyper real copies of the real thing. We only have "simulations" of reality-false versions of reality.. is it the same though?

Games are simulacras of war. Games are used as marketing and recruiting to join the war, as children like to play shooting games so a perfect way to put a hidden messages as children enjoy the game will they enjoy the army? However this is not a real representation of what the army is actually like as it is only showing the big strong heroic guys nothing is said about the injured or the dead. Only makes it sound good which is actually a very good marketing tool. 

Space man and a cowboy both are representations of the real iconic American man. Also both used in Toy Story as the two main characters. 

"Idealised Person" What defines good looking and acceptable? Who defines this? Good looking people on a 'Ugly' website, they consider themselves to be ugly?

Everyone from even a young age is concerned about their looks...

Sexualisation of girls

The new range of girls dolls called BRATZ. The new Bratz dolls are trying to be very 'down' with the youngsters. The logo and the writing is very graffiti style looking and they are playing with how words are actually spelt and changing the s to a z. The physical appearance of the dolls: They have very large over exaggerated eyes, this even makes them look slightly alien like but overly sexy for a little girls dolls almost like 'come to bed eyes'. They look very sexy dolls. On the website, not only is it games and looking at dolls and there overly sexy names but also once you sign out it says about 'Be beautiful', solely about image and looks! And at all points as your playing the game or looking on the website ect there is always a little symbol about shopping ie buying! Therefor it is also a profitable website, directed at CHILDREN!

Primark produced a bra for a girl aged two that was padded this eventually was removed from all shops after a long time. This is an outrage!

T-shirts printed from children with rude messages wrote on the front, also not acceptable

Sequined thongs produced for young girls 

Pink Playboy pencil cases on sale obviously directed at school goers

'Zoo' Magazine at eye level for everyone to see, is this unacceptable for young girls to see or is it offensive to them?

Young people are affected by what they see around them so are we sending out the correct message?

This affects the way we see, understand and think about the world.

Sexualisation to all women is in:

Magazines, Adverts, on the TV, song lyrics, on the internet, computer games, movies/films and music videos ect

What does this say about the male community?

Task 1 Inter textual artifact

• Locate an inter textual artifact.

The artifact that I have chosen will be the film Snow White, I have chosen this as I think there are many hidden meanings which have been though of very carefully and Disney have made the message hidden in the children's film, so really they are learning as well. 

• Identify the text it represents and how they function to give the work added meaning.

I think there is a clear reference to good and evil. This is shown by a good, nice and innocent Snow White who is helping clean and dust a house for the dwarfs, when a nasty, ugly witch comes along- the music changes to some eerie sound track to make her seem like a scary character. I think this could stem back to the angel and the devil which then relates back to the stories held in the bible.

The Seven Dwarfs represent different personalities and the moods that people can be in.
On a website I have looked at they say that there is comparisons the names of the dwarfs with your own personality changes when you have a drug addiction i think this is very clever.






Sleepy: Change in sleep patter
Happy: Mood Swings
Grumpy: Mood swings
Sneezy: Allergies
Bashful: Personality Alteration
Dopey: Self Explanatory
Doc: What you'll need at the end of it

Snow White eating the poisoned apple, I think this is a direct connection to Adam and Eve in the bible as they where warned not to eat the apple and yet they still did. Snow White ate the apple even though the circumstances where all wrong. 

• Consider how postmodern practitioners work can ever be original.

Personally I don't think that work can ever be original again, only due to the fact that we are influenced by every art movement that has happened, other artists and the entire world surrounding us. We also have a huge history that has been recorded and old pieces of art that still survived. Due to a compilation of all the elements I don't think that work could go back to originality without being influenced even in the slightest.