The End Has No End

When I first signed up for this course, I really had no idea as to what “Gendered Bodies in Visual Culture” meant. I just really needed an upper level course to fulfill the requirements for the Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies certificate. I noticed the word “gender” (which I like talking about) and I noticed the phrase “visual culture” (which I also like talking about) and figured there was a good chance there would be at least one discussion surrounding one or both of those topics. So I signed up.

On the first day, the first thing I noticed was that this was going to be a very, very intimate class. I was intimidated at the start, but now I think that this is one of my favorite aspects. With such a small class size, it is easier for organic conversations and discussions to occur. And it is easier to become more comfortable discussing certain topics. Similarly, it is easier for everyone to contribute to those conversations… and luckily for me, everyone had intelligent things to say.

It is hard for me to pick a favorite part of the course. Legitimately every class was interesting and full of great discussions. The topics and essays we read were, in general, thought provoking. If I had to pick my top three, it would probably include the section on disability, the section on fashion, and the most recent section on the body as a spectacle (the Bodies and Bodyworlds exhibits).

I found those three parts the most interesting because they were topics that I probably wouldn’t have thought as critically about without this course (though I guess I could say that about all the topics we covered). I also think I found the cultural objects associated with these topics the most intriguing. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed all of the cultural objects, but I especially liked the Axis Dance Company videos, the Mimi Nguyen blog, and the websites associated with the body-themed exhibits.

The thing I liked most about the Axis Dance Company was that instead of trying to hide the difference in bodies, they embraced it and celebrated it. Wheelchairs played heavily into the choreography of the pieces. I also enjoyed the conversations surrounding it. Instead of accepting what was shown, classmates brought good and interesting challenges to what they were seeing. Why were the only disabled bodies used in wheelchairs? If this performance happens in a theater, how can a lot of disabled people go to see it since theaters are typically made for the able bodies?

The thing I like about Nguyen’s blog was that it thought critically about fashion and called out ridiculous and offensive things it was doing. For instance, I had no idea that modern day models still get put into blackface. I also liked how each classmate brought in their favorite post to discuss. It highlighted entries that I didn’t really pay any attention to at first glance.

The body-themed exhibits really blew my mind. They have so many complicated and sometimes troublesome aspects. I’m conflicted when I look at them because, on the one hand, they do have the potential to serve a scientific and useful purpose. But on the other hand, they have such gendered, racist, classist, and sexist implications.

Overall, I’m glad that I took this course. It opened my eyes to a lot of things that I wouldn’t have known about otherwise. Classes sometimes shape the way I view the world. For instance when I took a drawing course, I started noticing the lines and shapes within and outside of objects. With this course, I started noticing social implications and messages that the visual culture we live in has or puts out. I can’t watch television, look at advertisements, or think about museums the same way ever again. The course may be ending, but the effects of it aren’t.