the article i wrote for the mag

The sexual objectification of women in art stems from western patriarchal power structures, wherein art has historically been mostly made and commissioned by men for men. Because of this, the history of western art has been dominated by a male perspective. Coined the ‘male gaze’ in her seminal essay ‘Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema’, this perspective is a concept that refers to the sexual objectification of women in Cinema, but extends to other media such as art. Following the twentieth century, women’s rights have become equal to that of men, and their rule in the art world has expanded from the objectified to participants. Still yet, men continue to dominate the art world, and the “male gaze” is far from a dying concept. However, in recent years, a concept that opposes the male gaze has emerged. Dubbed “the female gaze”, this female perspective offers an alternative look at female subjects; rather than objects, they are complex, and centre stage, rather than subjects, and they are the viewers/intended audience. Despite being a relatively new concept, the female gaze is evident in the works of the few female artists throughout history. For instance, Italian baroque painter, Artemisia Gentileschi, who’s interpretation of myths, allegories and the bible depicted, was far rawer and emotionally complex than her male peers. Instead of depicting her female subjects as sexual objects for male viewing no matter what situation there was in – even murdering someone – Gentileschi depicted women as realistically as possible – both physically and emotionally. Whereas male painters romanticised the story of Judith beheading Holofernes by sexualising Judith in their depictions e.g. by making the killing look effortless, Gentileschi depicted the rough physical labour of murder in her 1614 – 20 “Judith Slaying Holofernes”, where Judith and her maid are involved in a struggle with Holofernes as they behead him. It is this kind of depiction,or gaze, that is also present in modern films such as Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, shot by Ellen Kuras or the television show, Jessica Jones, where women are represented as complex rather than complex, and the audience is intended to be female rather than male. As the male gaze slowly fades into obscurity, we here at the wandering eye believe that is just the beginning for the female gaze.