Feminist Public Action Project
course action :: final project
As a culminating activity, the class will engage in a collaborative project that speaks to a personal or political theme the group wishes to shed light on.
This work will be activated in a public setting.
The work can remain on campus and may extend into the village and beyond.
Each student will complete the following and hand in as hardcopy of your collaborative event:
This work will be activated in a public setting.
The work can remain on campus and may extend into the village and beyond.
Each student will complete the following and hand in as hardcopy of your collaborative event:
- Create a flyer for the event
- Create a one page media release for your event noting Title, Location, Date, Time, image
- Create the elements for your event and be fully engaged in the collaborative process.
- Following the event, create an individual analysis about why you became involved with this particular action and what did you hope to achieve? Do you believe it was successful?
- Speak to what was learned from course readings. In particular, how you placed yourself in the idea of the project, how you developed it and the overall process of collaboration?
- Would you consider this statement to be true? “The process of collaboration extends beyond the maker." Explain
- Can a personal action also be a political one? Explain
- Explain your argument clearly with supportive evidence from documents seen and read in class AND your own research
i. student response
Public Action Response
My involvement in this particular social action, taking contemporary advertisements and calling attention to the issues that each perpetuates, lies in my beliefs which are grounded in feminism, and subsequently, humanism. Prior to taking Women in the Visual Arts, I had a limited understanding of feminism. The documents that we were able to analyze, the artists that we reviewed, and the critiques that we participated in concerning popular culture, really opened my eyes to the true definition of feminism.
Through this social action we hoped to achieve some awareness about the prevalence of inappropriate ad campaigns utilized by companies such as Tom Ford and American Apparel. Some of the advertisements that we found were truly disgusting-- appropriating more than a male gaze. I do think that this action was successful because it was mostly unavoidable for the students and citizens of Cazenovia to at least consider. The whole idea was to inspire thought-- and I believe that the collective succeeded in that sense.
Honestly, it felt a lot like we were Guerrilla Girls, sans masks and pseudonyms. This is because the Girls used similar tactics in spreading awareness of gender-bias, with an emphasis in exposing the art world. I think because we enjoyed learning about the Guerrilla Girls' efforts in-class, and we tried to use some similar methods in publicizing our own points.
In responding to the statement the process of collaboration extends beyond the maker, I believe that understanding collaboration in that sense is absolutely true. If each member of our class did not research ideas and concepts individually, and then connected in creating our public process, it is likely that we, individually, would have had a much more limited perspective. We each brought something to the table with this project. Also, our collaboration extended much beyond ourselves, in identifying sexist culture in common culture. I think the message was well-received.
In responding to if a personal action can also be a political action, I think that is absolutely true. Personal action and political action can be entirely separate or entirely combined depending on the beliefs of a specific being. Understanding personal experience with political and social structures as a frame of reference, can be key in understanding oneself and the larger society in which that person inhabits.
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ii student response
My part in this action project was creating the calling cards. My idea originated from a recurring campaign which stated “I am a feminist because...” and “I am not a feminist because...”which was spread all over social media. I believe there is a confusion to the word feminist. Many people see the word tied to the radical stereotype of feminism that is portrayed by media and popular culture. The purpose was to make people realize that many of them are feminists but, do not consider themselves to be one. As the calling cards went out around campus, they were found all over and people started talking. Of course there were positive and negative opinions. As the creator behind it, watching and listening to people react was very interesting. Overall the calling cards seem to be a great way to get the message moving.
Overall, the project was a great experience and, even when walking to class, I can spot a card around. When asking people “Are you a feminist?” many said “no”. As a follow up question I asked them to explain why or why not. After hearing their statements, I continued to point out that their opinions are similar to the views of feminists. But, they feel the word “feminism” is too extreme. When talking to one person that considered their self a feminist, she said, “There are feminists and radical feminists just like there are democrats and radical democrats.” This helped to put things in perspective with the use of a metaphor. Feminist isn't a bad word. They fight for the equal right of women and men. People should not fear the “F” word.
ii student response
The action project created by the class was successful, collaborated and extremely insightful. Throughout the semester a question I struggled with was, “Am I a feminist?” This project allowed me to pose the same question to the public. The action project consisted of three pieces. The first being a calling card that questioned if you are a feminist or not. The second were different wearable pins and posters that have popular cultural advertisements. These were distributed across the Cazenovia college campus, in local businesses and other areas in central New York. And the last action piece where the project was all tied together with a blog through tumbler. Spreading the message that we believed in as a group was an exciting and rewarding feat.
My part in this action project was creating the calling cards. My idea originated from a recurring campaign which stated “I am a feminist because...” and “I am not a feminist because...”which was spread all over social media. I believe there is a confusion to the word feminist. Many people see the word tied to the radical stereotype of feminism that is portrayed by media and popular culture. The purpose was to make people realize that many of them are feminists but, do not consider themselves to be one. As the calling cards went out around campus, they were found all over and people started talking. Of course there were positive and negative opinions. As the creator behind it, watching and listening to people react was very interesting. Overall the calling cards seem to be a great way to get the message moving.
Another action were the pins and posters. They came out a few days after the calling cards and I believe that these played a very important role in the success of this project. It supported the idea of the cards and helped people recognize the importance. The cards brought attention to the problem and asked a question. The posters and pins showed that the problem was relevant and needed to be addressed. Again, hearing the feedback was interesting. People responded to the advertisements in disgust and surprise. They were a convincing way of showing that feminism is more than what the stereotype conveys.
Overall, the project was a great experience and, even when walking to class, I can spot a card around. When asking people “Are you a feminist?” many said “no”. As a follow up question I asked them to explain why or why not. After hearing their statements, I continued to point out that their opinions are similar to the views of feminists. But, they feel the word “feminism” is too extreme. When talking to one person that considered their self a feminist, she said, “There are feminists and radical feminists just like there are democrats and radical democrats.” This helped to put things in perspective with the use of a metaphor. Feminist isn't a bad word. They fight for the equal right of women and men. People should not fear the “F” word.
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iii student response
iii student response
For our feminist public art project in this semester’s Women in the Visual Arts class, our class took contemporary advertisements and marketing campaigns and called to attention their objectification, sexism, sexualization, gender bias, encouragement of rape culture, racism, and other forms of oppression towards the individuals pictured in their visuals and associated groups by writing “THIS OPPRESSES US” over this image. We made pins that we handed out for free around campus and beyond, as well as postered around campus with larger signs of the same imagery and documented them in their locations. The amount of blatant negative social commentary in these ads is truly astounding, and disgusting on a deep and pervasive level. The only way to enact positive change in our society is to call out companies, groups, and individuals who use oppressive tools to make a profit as socially irresponsible and culturally ignorant. In conjunction with this project, we had calling cards printed with “I am a feminist because…” on one side and “I am not a feminist because…” on the other side, to reduce fear of the “F” word and negative connotations associated with identifying oneself as a feminist.
In becoming involved with this project, I hoped to achieve consciousness-raising and increased awareness around campus and beyond. I continue to leave these cards in places where like-minded individuals might find them, as well as individuals who may not know yet that they are like-minded. I thought the cards were extremely effective because they called to attention actual reasons one might not want to be considered a feminist, such as “I don’t think men and women should have equal rights”. While I believe that everyone is entitled to identify how they choose, it seems unlikely that people would honestly identify with the reasons on the “not a feminist” side. I have a huge personal issue with people who don’t want to identify with feminism, but believe in feminist aims, because they think it paints them in a negative light. News flash: if you believe in equal rights for all, regardless of gender, you’re probably a feminist. I think that we definitely achieved these aims around campus. I have heard people react to finding them, saying things like, “wow, this is so cool, I want one,” (towards the cards) and “wow, this is disgusting,” (towards the posters/pins) which really was wonderful to hear, that we actually did something that made people question social constructs. This was a very personal action for me, and I think it is also a political action - we called attention to the way our patriarchal society dominates marketing and advertising culture in a way that may make people change their mind about how they see others, and even how they vote. Oppression is everywhere, we just have to wake up to it, and when we do, it is our duty to wake others.
I think that we put what we read in bell hooks’ Feminism is for Everybody into action very effectively. Hooks states, "Today in academic circles much of the most celebrated feminist theory is written in a sophisticated jargon that only the well-educated can read. Most people in our society do not have a basic understanding of feminism; they cannot acquire that understanding from a wealth of diverse material, grade school-level primers, and so on, because this material does not exist" (pg. 112). In this context, I am so proud of what we did. We used an accessible form of media to raise public consciousness about a more academic ideal. We became visionary feminists.
I believe the collaborative process worked very well, although I wish we could have made more stuff: buttons and stickers and cards to pass out that had the #THISOPPRESSESUS images on them. It would have been cool to sell/give away something more stable as a wearable; my pin lasted about 4 days before it got ripped off the backing and disappeared. I will continue to post on the blog with images of oppression and will also continue to use the hashtag. I handed out the rest of the pins we had left over from the craft sale, and I have been encouraging people to check out the blog and use the hashtag. I think the process of collaboration absolutely extends beyond the maker, and extends to each person involved and everyone who sees the project. I feel a little bit like a Guerilla Girl right now, and that’s something to be proud of.
