Why Female Photographers Still Mimic the Male Gaze
Three years ago, I met a photography student Monika Scherer via Facebook. A mutual friend reposted her note saying that she is looking for girls in the area who would pose for her — she wanted to hone her craft as a photographer and build up a portfolio. I gave the repost a shy like and the rest is history.
We did the first shoot in a forest behind Monika’s house. I have never posed for anyone and when she told me to squinch (a way of tightening your lower eyelids, I believe), I just gawked at her. Despite my initial shyness, we had a lot of fun and became good friends, taking many more pictures together throughout the years.
Right, the pictures. Don’t take me wrong I loved the photographs then and still do now. I particularly appreciate that when I look at them, I don’t recognize myself — rather, I am transformed, a version of myself separate from the person I am in the everyday life. An ethereal being, if you will.
And yet the way I perceive these pictures has changed this spring after I attended a university course on the 70s feminist theory and art. When I look at the photographs now, I see them in a different light: while we thought we were creating a feminine vision of the world, we, in fact, mimicked the gender stereotypes often found in the media surrounding us. Fun stuff like “feminine touch”…
