Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
Alli Flores
ARE6641
Digital Drawing
2017
Summary
In this essay I will explore the influence of social norms/media/popular culture on female
students perception of beauty and personal identity through art. I will also discuss the
identity or ones self. I feel that this is an important topic for art educators as we often teach
portraiture without digging deeper into students perceptions of identity or beauty. As a female
art educator and an artist that focuses on ideals and social constructs of femininity I am
Media
The media and popular culture have a great impact on the way students interact with the
world around them along with forming ideals and standards for themselves. Media and popular
culture are part of the foundation for female students development of identity and self (Levy,
2007). I feel that art educators should understand the deep level at which society and the media
influences female students in relation to beauty and their own identity. Art education revolves
around critical thinking and to ask questions. It does not seem fair to ask students to create a self-
portrait without focusing on identity, influence of the media, social norms, and expectations.
It seems that many of the norms or expectations in popular magazines that refer to beauty
are unattainable. There have been some shifts in this sort of unrealistic beauty ideals. The Barbie
doll, which I would consider to be a toy icon, has started to change with the times. In
January, Mattel made Barbie more diverse, saying it would make her look more like real women.
The new 2016 Barbie Fashionistas doll line includes four body types (the original and three new
bodies), seven skin tones, 22 eye colors, 24 hairstyles and countless on-trend fashions and
accessories, the toymaker said (Clement, 2016, para 2). This is a shift in the right direction in
order for females to grown up with a Barbie that looks more realistic. The art classroom is a great
venue to question and discuss what we define as beauty, feminine, and how these ideas relate to
Visual culture has an impact on the development of girls and their ideals without a doubt.
Globalization and the use of technology has made media an integral part of society, almost
everywhere you turn is some type of media. Duncum explains, Other rich sites of contemporary
visual culture include theme parks, television drama and news broadcasts, magazine
advertisements, community celebrations, fast food restaurants, and computer games (2005,
p.25). The concept of using examples of visual culture to encourage students to question and
guide them to think critically about these concepts would be beneficial to an art curriculum. By
viewing and discussing controversial visual culture it would give students the opportunity to
raise new questions and to realize that each student in the class might have a different viewpoint
(Dumcum, 2003).
As a society we are visually bombarded with media, female adolescents are particularly
sensitive to this and as a result it can negatively impact their concept of self, body image, and
identity. Identity can be viewed as something that is fluid and many factors and experiences can
contribute to the development of ones identity (Merino, 2015). Girls experience an immense
pressure to be beautiful and sophisticated in todays society. Wang explains, studies show that
judgments of physical attractiveness and ideas of beauty appear early in childrens lives and
serve a function related to identity formation and determination of social status (2012, p.5).
American culture values adolescent girls based on their appearances more than anything else so
appearance is what teenage girls are most concerned with (Pipher, 1994). Typically I would
introduce self-portraits and discuss examples of other artists self-portraits. I now realize this is
not even scratching the surface of what I should be focusing on. Portraiture also provides and
unique and special opportunity to questions social pressures, expectations, and definitions of
beauty. According to Markello, instead of sabotaging young women by fearing and shunning
the world of visual media, it is time to make sense of visual culture by creating opportunities for
openly discussing cultural pressures and inequities (2005, p.148). Even the negative aspects of
media influence could be transformed into a more positive learning experience. Before creating a
self-portrait I would like to encourage an open discussion with students about how popular
Reflection
Each school year I introduce portraiture as a project to practice certain artistic skills. Now
that I have researched the influence of visual culture on identity I plan to focus more on a self-
portrait project that invites students to represent their personal identities. I created a self-portrait
as a result of my research of media influence on identity. Within the artwork I depicted visual
advertisements, beauty products, and a busy background to emanate the feeling of having your
senses overloaded. Popular culture and media not only influence ones perception of beauty but
also influence the development of ones identity. With all of the influences in today society is it
easy for female students to be engulfed with the need to look perfect despite this being a
superficial surface beauty. Female adolescents feel pressured to meet social expectations and
norms, which is why I created the subject as a puppet to depict the social constructs that my
beautiful. I think it a great starting point for inspiration to view these works to encourage
students to ask themselves what is beautiful, what is feminine, and how does media and popular
culture affect our identity. Within Merinos article The Female Body & Identity (2015) is a focus
on four female artists that explore the social construction of womens identity through their
artwork. In relation to artist Klara Kristalovas work Merino states, The body is more than just a
In the article Contemporary Artist Edel Verzijl Redefining Femininity, the artist Verzijl is
interviewed and discusses her work and how she strives to depict feminine beauty in a way that is not
always flattering or happy. Verzijl wants to communicate the beauty in a bad day and doesnt shy
away from feelings of sadness, loneliness, or vulnerability (Maiello, 2014). The globalizations of
visual culture and social expectations/norms have an immense impact on the development of
identity or ones self. As an educator I feel it is necessary to provide opportunities for students to
questions, debate, and think critically about media influence. Hopefully by providing more
meaning to the idea of self, students will comprehend the influence that visual culture has on
their everyday lives. We as a school community can redefine beauty along with expressing our
identity through art. I believe that by providing these learning experiences for my students that
we can advocate for social justice through art and have a deeper understanding of visual culture
Clement, D. P. (2016, April 1). The female identity, discussed in art. The New York Times.
discussed-in-art.html?_r=0
Duncum, P. (2003). Visual culture in the classroom. Art Education, 56(2), 25-32.
Fisher, V. D. (2008). Beauty and the Expansion of Womens Identity. Journal of Integral Theory
Hermes, J. (1995). Reading women's magazines: An analysis of everyday media use. Cambridge,
Levy, L. (2007). Pink politics: Girls' meaning making practices and critical art
Maiello, L. P. (2014). Contemporary Artist Edel Verzijl -- Redefining Femininity. Retrieved from
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lia-petridis/contemporary-artist-edel-_b_6016736.html
Markello, C. (2005). Visual culture and teenage girls: Unraveling "cultural" threads tied to "self"
and "other". The Journal of Social Theory in Art Education, (25), 134-153.
Merino, A. (2015). The Female Body and Identity. Visual Culture & Gender,10, 89-94.
Pipher, M. (1994). Reviving Ophelia: Saving the selves of adolescent girls. New York: Ballantine
Books.