The Fruits of our Society
Faculty Mentor Name
Merrill Schleier
Additional Faculty Mentor Name
Daniel Kasser
Abstract/Artist Statement
My body of work is titled The Fruits of our Society. The theme of this series is the objectification of women’s bodies, especially their breasts in the United States. Breasts have long been the subject of paintings and sculptures, often depicted as objects of desire, and are commonly thought of as bountiful, nurturing, and fruitful. Over time, breasts have been referred to as many things, such as apples, pears, and melons, to name a few. These associations have objectified women’s breasts to nothing more than fruit, a source of nourishment that can just as easily be bought or disposed of. To portray this theme, I photographed bras with fruit in the place of breasts. By doing this, I am portraying many of the stereotypes concerning women’s breasts. These include size, shape, and youthfulness. In order to create these stereotypes in the photographs, I will be using different kinds of fruits and bras. For example, I will have a variety of fruits, such as watermelons, apples, kiwis, and limes. I will also have a wide range of bras, both in style and in size. The different combinations of fruits and bras will allow for an assortment of stereotypes that each viewer will be able to identify. This series was inspired by my interest in women’s body image. Having been a dancer since the age of seven, appearance has always been a major concern of mine. Since I first started dancing, I have been told I was too fat and needed to loose weight, or look like a traditional dancer with long, lean legs, small breasts, and a flatter stomach. My biggest issue as a dancer was my breasts. I was told that they were much too large, something I had no control over. In this series, I wanted to show the absurdity of this pressure through humor.
Location
Reynolds Gallery
Start Date
17-4-2013 6:00 PM
End Date
17-4-2013 8:00 PM
The Fruits of our Society
Reynolds Gallery
My body of work is titled The Fruits of our Society. The theme of this series is the objectification of women’s bodies, especially their breasts in the United States. Breasts have long been the subject of paintings and sculptures, often depicted as objects of desire, and are commonly thought of as bountiful, nurturing, and fruitful. Over time, breasts have been referred to as many things, such as apples, pears, and melons, to name a few. These associations have objectified women’s breasts to nothing more than fruit, a source of nourishment that can just as easily be bought or disposed of. To portray this theme, I photographed bras with fruit in the place of breasts. By doing this, I am portraying many of the stereotypes concerning women’s breasts. These include size, shape, and youthfulness. In order to create these stereotypes in the photographs, I will be using different kinds of fruits and bras. For example, I will have a variety of fruits, such as watermelons, apples, kiwis, and limes. I will also have a wide range of bras, both in style and in size. The different combinations of fruits and bras will allow for an assortment of stereotypes that each viewer will be able to identify. This series was inspired by my interest in women’s body image. Having been a dancer since the age of seven, appearance has always been a major concern of mine. Since I first started dancing, I have been told I was too fat and needed to loose weight, or look like a traditional dancer with long, lean legs, small breasts, and a flatter stomach. My biggest issue as a dancer was my breasts. I was told that they were much too large, something I had no control over. In this series, I wanted to show the absurdity of this pressure through humor.