The female gaze is the assertion of the women identity and the idea of a different kind of beauty that is less fake. The kind of beauty that involves all types of bodies and faces. You finally see people that are not too thin, may have pimples on their face or have cellulite, which are all completely normal as we know but due to the
effects of magazines and social media it was thought that only skinny supermodels could be published. In the modern day this is not the case anymore as we can look at activist and artist such as Zane Muholi and, Petra Collins and explore how their work examines issues of identity, femininity, sexuality and feminism.
Photography plays an important role in women emancipation and liberation. For the young generations all of the world and in places such as Russia feminism is on the rise. It is not just word and concepts but looks. Women in photography, fashion, film and media are redefining sexuality and enforcing the female gaze. Even in the 21st century Russia still has the old-fashioned gender stereotypes. Marriage remains the greatest achievement for a girl, childlessness is dishonored even professionally successful women often use a saying which says, “I’m a girl, I don't want to make decisions, I want to dress.” The word feminism itself has a long history of not being excepted by society and is seen as a rebellious act. So, it came through a different medium such as the laptop screen and phones screens. The generation that grew up online cannot stay immune to the shift in gender roles and became part of a new wave of feminism which is: young, image-driven and web empowered.
In other parts of the world such as Europe and US the new female gaze already has people empowering it such as Petra Collins with her suburban coming of age stories, Arvida Bystrom who's challenging the stereotypes of body representation with her bright candy colored shots and Valerie Philips with her portraits of young girls. The work that these artists make is usually built on reference from teenage hood and the aesthetic of beauty of being a girl, Americana and riot grrrl, these are usually captured with a dreamy 35mm grain. Russian ponders on the other hand must start from a different place. Their images are cold, more grown-up and sensual. The colors are faded and dusty, the setting just as cinematic but with no smell of popcorn.
As the technologies continues to grow and advance it allow women to be in more of control of their own image. The movement of women photographing themselves and other when has gained considerable pace, thanks both to the accessibility of cameras- like the from facing camera, allowing us to control our own image even more- and easier ways of getting these photos seen in public, through platforms like Instagram and snapchat. Zane Muholi who is a south African photographer and activist, she is well known for her great works of art that captures the experiences of black lesbians in Africa and of women- she photographs with different objects such as cables as necklaces.
She is also among artists that have shown that women can take charge of their own image rather than waiting for the system to change. "It’s about claiming the spaces, taking back power, owning our voices and our bodies, without fear of being judged.” as Muholi says.
The fact that more women are now taking pictures of themselves than ever before, and that we are being exposed to these images in fashion, advertising, art and photojournalism, is very significant. The female gaze was originally introduced by feminist theorists that look at cinema, but now broader impact, thanks to a generation of artists, photo editors and writers who have been pushing for the idea of the female gaze to be exposed more to the general public. The female gaze can be understood in loads of different ways, but it not only about seeing the more nuanced and truthful depiction of women’s bodies, experiences and ideas, that is not directed at the heteronormative, male viewer. It in fact a way of seeing the world differently, through a women eyes, rather than a world that is seen as more masculine and vertical way we’re used to. The female gaze is fluid, and it is not something that only relates to women.
We’re still living in 2018, in a structures and systems that weren't designed with women in mind. But as we’re starting to see, from the way the working world is structured to the way law are written, that it’s is starting to shift as women have more power. In photography, the female gaze deserves a deeper attention because it isn't simply a trend, but an insight into this alternative world view. It has a huge effect on the way we think women are now, finally taking control.
This does not mean that women don't make beautiful, sexual, or objectifying images; either women are just as likely to see themselves, or other women, in this way- but the question of who is profiting from the photograph and who is being overturned. Leah Schrager said “what's worth dousing is the discrepancy between how we treat industry-sanctioned women and DIY women who are basically doing the same thing, if a women is working through an institution such as modelling agency, we revere her. Yet is she does the same thing independently, the form of ‘posing, playing, presenting’, she is often demeaned.”