IMAGE 1: ORIGINAL

(http://www.readingthepictures.org/2012/06/the-victim-of-beauty-buzz-more-glamour-of-violence/)

 

Part 1: Analysis of Original Image

 

This image was originally published in the Bulgarian magazine 12, in 2012. It was part of a multi-page beauty spread advertising makeup. It features a woman who seems to have been the victim of abuse. We can infer this from her black eye. She is slender, well dressed, with professionally done hair and makeup. In the eyes of mainstream media, she would be considered beautiful. The caption “victim of beauty” implies that the woman’s black eye was made by makeup. The word victim is often used to describe someone who has been abused. This ties into the black eye, which is symbolic of the abuse. The image also contrasts the use of makeup to make something ugly (the black eye) and beautiful (the rest of her face). After controversy arose, the editors of 12 confirmed that the advertisement was used to demonstrate what could be done with makeup.

This image indirectly glorifies abuse. Domestic abuse is a real issue for men, women, and children around the world. The problem with this image is that it attempts to glorify abuse for monetary gain. The message portrayed is that it’s ok to romanticize abuse and use it for advertisements – essentially conveying the message that it is not an important issue. The message behind the image needs to be addressed in the culture jamming and show that abuse is serious and not inconsequential. This image can be modified to instead make others aware of the prevalence of domestic abuse.

 

IMAGE 2: POST EDIT

Part 2: Jamming Philosophy

My culture jamming aspired to change the message behind this image. I wanted to portray the woman as a victim of society. Modern society is highly focused on perfection and encourages us to want to be and look pretty. My intention was to portray this woman as someone who is afraid of speaking out about her domestic abuse because she feels that will destroy her perfect image and defy societal norms. I left the caption “victim of beauty” because society values beauty as perfection and she is a victim of this, as demonstrated with her perfectly styled hair and makeup. I included the line splitting her face into two sides to make it seem like there were two sides to the woman; the perfect side she shows to the world and the abused side that she keeps hidden. I included the caption “you don’t know what she could be hiding” to further portray this message of two opposing sides. It also addresses how she has conformed to society’s pressure of perfection, and has hidden her abuse, as opposed to speaking out about it.

My alterations were designed to make my audience uncomfortable and aware. Uncomfortable, because I wanted them to second-guess what lies beneath perfection. This woman’s perfection is makeup, which she uses to mask her abuse underneath. People are inherently uncomfortable with things that aren’t the norm and this image will force them to become aware that domestic abuse exists. My second intention was to encourage awareness surrounding domestic abuse. The caption I included at the bottom of the image “don’t hide domestic abuse, speak up” is a call to action. Hiding domestic abuse is unfortunately normal as it is used to avoid destroying that image of perfection and beauty, but coming out of hiding and speaking up can save lives.