ziyiwang703
Artist Statement
Masculinity and femininity can be considered as the primary elements that formed the world. Most philosophies have the idea of masculinity and femininity to explain the phenomena around the world. For example, in Taoism, the world is built based on the interaction between Yin (femininity) and Yang (masculinity). The balance of masculinity and femininity results in the harmony of the nature. As a subject of understanding the world through visual experience, there is no doubt that photography should involve in the interpretation of masculinity and femininity.
The understanding and presentation of masculinity and femininity varies from people to people. For example, some photographer prefers to show the notion of masculinity and femininity through presenting gender roles, such as Cindy Sherman. Others, such as Raymond Gehman, might prefer to add more interpretation on the idea of masculinity and femininity which is not limited on gender. I, personally, do not limit the understanding of masculinity and femininity just on gender. There are more interpretations of these concepts beyond gender basics. Masculinity conveys feelings of strength and calmness. Femininity conveys feelings of warmness and beauty. Color plays an important role in classifying masculinity and femininity as far as I am concerned. Warm temperature colors always have more feminine elements to the photographs than the cool temperature colors. Although the objects themselves can speak about characteristics of masculinity and femininity to the audience, the color choices of the photos also add more to the picture. For example, over the ten photos I shot for masculinity and femininity, there are conventional objects for the topic such as the nail polish and cigarettes. The make-ups and cigarettes are traditional representation of different genders. It is easy for audience to identify the characteristics of masculinity and femininity within the photos. However, there are also pictures that I chose to make a difference based on using different colors. For instance, there is one photo I shot about a pair of female shoes; however I decided to use a cool temperature color as the primary color for the photo which adds more coldness to the picture, and I, personally, believe that there is more masculinity going on in the picture.
As the primary elements in the universe, every object is made of the combination of masculinity and femininity. Gender is not the only way to identify these two concepts. By interpreting the emotions and feelings behind these two terms, photographer can give more meanings to their photos and create different ways to view the world.
Artist Statement
Masculinity and femininity can be considered as the primary elements that formed the world. Most philosophies have the idea of masculinity and femininity to explain the phenomena around the world. For example, in Taoism, the world is built based on the interaction between Yin (femininity) and Yang (masculinity). The balance of masculinity and femininity results in the harmony of the nature. As a subject of understanding the world through visual experience, there is no doubt that photography should involve in the interpretation of masculinity and femininity.
The understanding and presentation of masculinity and femininity varies from people to people. For example, some photographer prefers to show the notion of masculinity and femininity through presenting gender roles, such as Cindy Sherman. Others, such as Raymond Gehman, might prefer to add more interpretation on the idea of masculinity and femininity which is not limited on gender. I, personally, do not limit the understanding of masculinity and femininity just on gender. There are more interpretations of these concepts beyond gender basics. Masculinity conveys feelings of strength and calmness. Femininity conveys feelings of warmness and beauty. Color plays an important role in classifying masculinity and femininity as far as I am concerned. Warm temperature colors always have more feminine elements to the photographs than the cool temperature colors. Although the objects themselves can speak about characteristics of masculinity and femininity to the audience, the color choices of the photos also add more to the picture. For example, over the ten photos I shot for masculinity and femininity, there are conventional objects for the topic such as the nail polish and cigarettes. The make-ups and cigarettes are traditional representation of different genders. It is easy for audience to identify the characteristics of masculinity and femininity within the photos. However, there are also pictures that I chose to make a difference based on using different colors. For instance, there is one photo I shot about a pair of female shoes; however I decided to use a cool temperature color as the primary color for the photo which adds more coldness to the picture, and I, personally, believe that there is more masculinity going on in the picture.
As the primary elements in the universe, every object is made of the combination of masculinity and femininity. Gender is not the only way to identify these two concepts. By interpreting the emotions and feelings behind these two terms, photographer can give more meanings to their photos and create different ways to view the world.