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Beauty and the Beast – Can Life Drawing Support Female Students in Challenging Gendered Media Imagery?
Author(s) -
Stanhope Clare
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
international journal of art and design education
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.312
H-Index - 25
eISSN - 1476-8070
pISSN - 1476-8062
DOI - 10.1111/j.1476-8070.2013.12030.x
Subject(s) - beauty , perception , focus group , psychology , visual media , visual arts , social media , aesthetics , sociology , art , social psychology , political science , neuroscience , anthropology , law
How does life drawing impact on a group of 14–16‐year‐old female art and design students and their perception of body image? In contemporary Western society, we are bombarded with advertising, social media and celebrity culture on a daily basis, often with a focus on body image. This article questions whether, due to this visual assault, young female students have a democratic choice in forming a relationship with the body. Alternatively, do they feel pressured into conforming to a media led image? This article analyses the reaction of a group of GCSE fine art students to life drawing and a naked female nude. It questions their perceptions of ‘normal’ and discusses if art‐based research projects can challenge contemporary issues and young female students' perception of body image.