The Perpetual Misconceptions of Sexually Empowered Women
Within this body of work, I aim to explore the typically male-produced perceptions of women who hold confidence and empowerment in their sexuality and selves. The elements I chose to focus on, while infinite, were: the claims men have made on the idea of lingerie, dictating that it is designed for and worn for men, rather than for the women who adorn it; the consistent use of fruits to convey the image of female reproductive organs and the resulting, over-sexualization of any use or consumption of these foods; the view of women as objects, tools or vessels for male pleasure and care, the hyper-exaggeration of men and their sexual virility and the sensitivity that follows when women express dissatisfaction; and finally, the taboos surrounding women and self-pleasure which are unequivocally deemed more shameful than that of men. These cliches and taboos that consistently weigh women down, deny women the agency that is so quickly given to men because of their heteronormative sexual prowess and virility.