Gender representation- To what extent does advertising construct our ideas of gender?

Consumerism- "what is the relationship between branding and the consumer self" (Ewen)

NOTES:

*Karl Marx 1818-1883

theorist behind the political communism manifesto - unfair government 

*Critique of consumer/ commodity culture

-in commodity culture we construct our identities through the consumer products that inhabit our lives

-this is what Stewart Ewen terms 'the commodity self'

-Judith Williamson author of Decoding Advertisement 

'instead of being identified by what they produce, people identify themselves through what they consume'

Commodities that we buy or invest -

-Energy (oil-natural gases)

-Metals (Gold-silver-platinium-cooper)

-Agricultural 

How does commodity culture perpetuate false needs?

*Aesthetic innovation

*Planned obsolescence 

*Novelty 

Commodity Fetishism 

*Basically, advertising conceals the background 'history' of products. in other words the contact in which a product is produced is kept hidden.

Reification

*Products are given human associations

*Products themselves are perceived as sexy, romantic, cool, sophisticated, fun etc.

Frankfurt School (set up 1923)

*Herbert Marcuse Author of

(Ways of seeing) John Berger– First two questions

Women as a sex object or domestic image

(What does possession mean to you) Victor Burgin

“Men act and Women appear. Men look at women. Women watch themselves being looked at”

Hans Memling ‘Vanity’ (1485) – Birth of certain models of gender

*Social bases of the production of the image:

1. Produced by a man for another man

2. men where they only ones that could allow themselves to buy the material and be capable to produce something

*Please a male eye

*Erotic Function

*Same time as causing erotism + produces a piece with a hidden message (saying how superficial/vain she is- justifying the sexualisation of women towards men- power to keep the image of men as the leader.)

Ingres ‘le grand odalisque 1814

*sexualise

*youth and innocence

answers its own question

putting herself on display for you

Do women have to be naked to get into the Met.Museum?

Guerrilla Girls

Summary

Karl Marx

…..

Module Questions

Social/Political: “Discuss the role that graphic design had played in

(contemporary 20^th century graphic design examples)  - subtext – different forms of propaganda – stetic and style (style of representation and amply it to contemporary)

Look at Russian resconstrivition

This Question is not only about propaganda!

Visual communication

Look at – Oz Magazine