OUGD603 / Penguin Design Awards / Feminism, Inequality and Protest in the visual

'The Suffragettes wanted the right for women to vote.

The move for women to have the vote had really started in 1897 when Millicent Fawcett founded theNational Union of Women’s Suffrage. “Suffrage” means the right to vote and that is what women wanted – hence its inclusion in Fawcett’s title.' 

Source

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Poster, 1913

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'At an Independent Labour Party meeting in 1905, Annie Kenney and her sister, Jessie Kenney, heard Christabel Pankhurst speak on the subject of women's rights. Annie was extremely impressed with the content of the speech and the two women soon became close friends. Annie decided to join the recently formed Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU).' Source

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An act of protest or to draw attention to the Suffragettes cause, Emily Davidson collided with the King's horse.

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A more contemporary, if not skewed approach, to equality protest was undertaken by CHANEL and their affiliated models. I say skewed as the agenda of the protest coincides with the launch of the 2015 ready-to-wear launch, perhaps the commodification of protest publicity is a smart way to benefit both women's rights and sales without negative impact upon either. The visual language appropriated by CHANEL consists of stencil typography, hand rendered forms and phrases derived from the visual history of Feminism and protest.

Source

CHANEL's appropriation of Feminist visual history is a process I must not mirror in this practice; to appropriate without consideration and subsequent irony (Karl Lagerfield reportedly "once dismissed concerns over size zero models as the cries of “fat mommies with bags of crisps”). Appropriation is strived for, not subversion.

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The physical embodiment of social pressures faced by women is used here,
perhaps one of the pressures Moran mentions in the foreword could be translated visually.

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A practice of colour, rather than imagery here. 'Bad Feminist' in a pink hue communicates a feminine sense due to the colour's connotations; but why is pink considered Feminine?

Pink was once considered to be for boys, while blue was feminine;

'An oft-quoted 1918 Ladies’ Home Journal article declared that: “There has been a great diversity of opinion on the subject, but the generally accepted rule is pink for the boy and blue for the girl. The reason is that pink, being a more decided and stronger colour, is more suitable for the boy, while blue, which is more delicate and dainty, is prettier for the girl.' 

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Post WW2, red hues became common with female make-up - similar hues of clothing were to then follow;

'Pink became the colour du jour, and women were encouraged to use blusher, rouge and lipstick to give off an air of healthiness and desirability. Women then attempted to match their clothes and accessories with their makeup, resulting in the ‘pinkification’ of feminine attire.'

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The development of consumer culture and post-war luxury was to exaggerate the

gender / colour affiliations;

'The continuing dominance of navy blue for men’s dress uniforms during both the First and Second World Wars may have led more people to associate blue with soldiers and thus with masculinity.'

'To differentiate between the official nurses and the volunteers, different coloured uniforms were required. 

Pink became the most common colour, which led to the volunteers widely being called Pink Ladies. '

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Marketers quickly realised that products made in exciting colours such as pink would appeal to a woman’s desire for post-War reinvention. '

Source

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Feminism in Pop Culture: #FREETHENIPPLE

Interpreted as controversial, unorthodox and obscene by many - #freethenipple campaigns for exactly that, the freedom to bear female nipple - not the male nipple, that's totally different.

The typographic communication to accompany the campaign was similar to that of CND, condensed sans-serif typography affirmed a determined, provocative nature;

The use of pink too reitterates earlier discussion of its connotations to femininity. The use of crosses over the nipple communicates censorship while being reminiscent of subversive tools of communications, as found and discussed in the Context Of Practice dissertation. A natural conversation would follow into the work of hardcore Feminist group; PUSSY RIOT!!!.

A timely point to note; the different strands of Feminism differ greatly, while some are orthodox and law-abiding, groups such as PUSSY RIOT adopt more unorthodox tactics to communicate message. It is in good practice to then consider the relation I make between 'How To Be A Woman' and Feminism through visual communication, designing the cover to reflect PUSSY RIOT!!! mentality would not be suitable as Moran's approach is less provocative and more subtle, relatable to the 'Modern Woman' and not tangents of the PUNK movement.

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PUSSY RIOT - A PUNK Riot BBC

Renowned for unorthodox performance, the three-piece group perform stunts, gigs and other visual and verbal protests in contexts of their agenda; Their performance in Moscow's Christ The Saviour Cathedral was a reaction to the presidential elections taking place at the time, criticising the Church's relationship with the State as well as LGBT, human and unjust acts of Putin, the presidential candidate at the time.

Visual affiliation between PUSSY RIOT and Moran's work could be made as to communicate the connotations PUSSY RIOT's visual language has conceived.

Although HTBAW and PUSSY RIOT react to similar oppression,  the later's connotations are too extreme to deem appropriate.

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RIOT GRRRL ZINE

The visual language associated with Feminist zines such as RIOT GRRRL may hold tools of communication viable to use for the Penguin design;

The aesthetic derived from the DIY production of such publications is discussed here in my Context Of Practice blog. The subversive, ironic and appropriative manner of the design does mirror Moran's writing however it is an artefact of a past time while the brief demands a 'contemporary' approach.