Greatings to all of you!
To answer your long awaiting question Buttons, I have decided to conduct my cyber ethnographic research in several locations where can be found the neo-burlesque community online, mostly: artist’s websites, myspace pages, yahoo groups, blogs, as well as the burlesque-oriented facebook groups and promotional messaging. I did refrain from studying the profiles of my facebook burlesquer friends, for ethical concerns, since I find the line is too thin between the burlesque personas and their daily life identities. Furthermore, I don’t see how enlightening could be their family reunion pictures with regards to my research interests.
As per suicide girls and god girls, which are essentially alternate porn websites with girls adopting the punk, goth, rockabilly, and even burlesque esthetic codes, I believe it is a bit different than neo-burlesque itself, which is more subtle in it’s displaying of sexuality. Usually, burlesque shows will not feature women stripping beyond a pair of pasties – which is part of the code and the tradition. Now I didn’t explore them exhaustively, but I would not be surprised, and I would even expect to find some burlesquers on these sites. I will not be positioning myself here because I don’t know enough about the type of representation of women (is it objectifying or subjectifying? I have yet to answer this question for burlesque) but I believe the same type of “ecriture feminine” analysis could be conducted – even considering the porno nature of the sites – as long as it implies the subjective experience of women:
“Writing the feminine body is, to be sure, a difficult undertaking, but it remains a mechanism by which women can continue to subvert the signifying practices of a male-dominated culture. In particular, this includes television, advertising, films and pornography – all the institutions that privilege and propagate male desire. Women’s otherness, as posited in “ecriture feminine” is an attempt to dislodge such culture-specific mediation of the female body (Dallery, 1989, p.6)” (Excerpt taken from Postmodernism, feminism and the body: The visible and the invisible in consumer research, Joy & Venkatesh, 1994).
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Monday, March 9, 2009
Happy International Women's Day
First, happy belated International Women's Day to all women, their lovers and aficionados... I am overwhelmed (in a good way) about all the refreshing conversations that were engaged about contemporary feminism in the newspapers, online on blogs, among my peers...
I have to congratulate the initiatives of bloggers such as Alex, who initiated the cyber manifestation “Le 8 mars 2009, bloguons pour les femmes!” which invited people, women and men, to share their vision of feminism in 2009.
I took the opportunity to invite readers to let me know about their thoughts on my research project, by referring them to this blog (which you are too, class colleagues, invited to comment). I am still hoping for feedback as it is very important for the finality of my research project (humanizing the female representation in advertising). Let’s see what happens...
Furthermore, I came across this chronicle in La Presse, yesterday which could hardly be more in line with my research. http://www.cyberpresse.ca/opinions/chroniqueurs/rima-elkouri/200903/08/01-834310-ni-pitounes-ni-soumises.php
It was also sent to me by a research colleague with whom I’ve previously debated on the subject of emancipation in burlesque striptease and pole-dancing classes. I am currently working on a blog post about it (as well as my answer to your questions, Button’s and Owen)…
I have to congratulate the initiatives of bloggers such as Alex, who initiated the cyber manifestation “Le 8 mars 2009, bloguons pour les femmes!” which invited people, women and men, to share their vision of feminism in 2009.
I took the opportunity to invite readers to let me know about their thoughts on my research project, by referring them to this blog (which you are too, class colleagues, invited to comment). I am still hoping for feedback as it is very important for the finality of my research project (humanizing the female representation in advertising). Let’s see what happens...
Furthermore, I came across this chronicle in La Presse, yesterday which could hardly be more in line with my research. http://www.cyberpresse.ca/opinions/chroniqueurs/rima-elkouri/200903/08/01-834310-ni-pitounes-ni-soumises.php
It was also sent to me by a research colleague with whom I’ve previously debated on the subject of emancipation in burlesque striptease and pole-dancing classes. I am currently working on a blog post about it (as well as my answer to your questions, Button’s and Owen)…
Monday, March 2, 2009
My interests in the neo-burlesque subculture...
First, I need to apologize for the delay in updating my blog… I had to take my mind off of the glittery neo-burlesque world for a while, in order to prepare and participate in an « ethnographic raid » about the alien and UFO « culture » in Roswell… Intriguingly, I couldn’t help but denote resemblance with burlesque but just don’t get me started on that…
I’d like to thank you all for your comments and questions, since they are really helping me define how to best tackle this cyber ethnographic research project… In the following blog postings, I will try to answer your questions as best as I can…
First, what is my interest with the topic?
I came in contact with the neo-burlesque subculture a few years ago and somehow, what interested me at first was the fact that women from different sizes and body shapes could appropriate themselves the performance of striptease, regardless of the social prescription vis-à-vis their appearance… You know: « you shouldn’t wear that », « this is too revealing for a person your size », « you should wear black, it’s more flattering »… Yet, these girls on stage seem to take irreverent pleasure in doing exactly the opposite, in front of an enthusiastic crown of men and women. I have to admit I really got impressed…
Being a student in interpretative consumer research, as well as sensitive about the consequences of normative images on girl’s self-esteem, I have long been interested in alternative ways of representing women in advertising… Somehow, I thought neo-burlesque could prove the appeal of portraying different types of women, while still being highly inspirational in a marketing perspective.
Over a year ago, I started my research project and participated in 2 levels of neo-burlesque classes for over 4 months. I conducted interviews with students, as well as artists, attended several shows in Montreal (and still doing so), and followed a troupe in a mini road-trip to an out of province festival. I am now immersing myself in the online aspect of the community, as well as preparing my fieldwork as a helping volunteer in the organization of a burlesque festival out of province.
At first, my project (which is in the strand of consumer culture theory or CCT (Arnould and Thompson, 2005)) was mostly focussing on how, through burlesque, women were challenging feminine physical norms perpetuated by the market, as well as negotiating their rightful place within the definition of beauty, sensuality, glamorousness and sexual allure.
As time went-by, I got more familiar with the scene… In certain instances, I was deceived (and even discomforted) by performances that I would have then judged as rather naïve uses of the burlesque aesthetic, and as gratuitous displays of bodies that could otherwise fit within the contemporary strip club standards It’s only while discussing with performers and familiarizing with the work of post-structuralist feminist writers and researchers that I realized burlesque was going beyond solely challenging the physical norms perpetuated by the market.
Not to say that all performances are subversive in any way, but I realized lots of them are an opportunity for artists to reclaim their oppressed sexuality and body (not just in term of its physical appearance but mostly in term of its experience) : a form of « écriture féminine » (Cixous) that entitle women to become sexual subjects by displaying their own, different, « erotic universe » rather than the sexualized objects they are often portrayed as in advertising (for instance), based on the realm of masculine fantasies. Like mentioned by Jacki Willson in her book « The Happy Stripper », it is worrying to see that young women define their sexuality through the sexual attraction they suscitate, rather than the desire they are likely to experience (and should acknowledge) as human beings. The irreverent attitude and immodesty of certain neo-burlesque artists towards sexuality is one of the aspects that now interest me the most in this whole subculture. With their wit and humour - and whether they are conscious about it or not - they are often contributing to the redefinition of sexuality in a feminine perspective (but, as well as sometimes, consolidating the statue quo in terms of female representation).
In a sense, this perspective is loaded with implications about the way we envision women representation in advertising.
I’d like to thank you all for your comments and questions, since they are really helping me define how to best tackle this cyber ethnographic research project… In the following blog postings, I will try to answer your questions as best as I can…
First, what is my interest with the topic?
I came in contact with the neo-burlesque subculture a few years ago and somehow, what interested me at first was the fact that women from different sizes and body shapes could appropriate themselves the performance of striptease, regardless of the social prescription vis-à-vis their appearance… You know: « you shouldn’t wear that », « this is too revealing for a person your size », « you should wear black, it’s more flattering »… Yet, these girls on stage seem to take irreverent pleasure in doing exactly the opposite, in front of an enthusiastic crown of men and women. I have to admit I really got impressed…
Being a student in interpretative consumer research, as well as sensitive about the consequences of normative images on girl’s self-esteem, I have long been interested in alternative ways of representing women in advertising… Somehow, I thought neo-burlesque could prove the appeal of portraying different types of women, while still being highly inspirational in a marketing perspective.
Over a year ago, I started my research project and participated in 2 levels of neo-burlesque classes for over 4 months. I conducted interviews with students, as well as artists, attended several shows in Montreal (and still doing so), and followed a troupe in a mini road-trip to an out of province festival. I am now immersing myself in the online aspect of the community, as well as preparing my fieldwork as a helping volunteer in the organization of a burlesque festival out of province.
At first, my project (which is in the strand of consumer culture theory or CCT (Arnould and Thompson, 2005)) was mostly focussing on how, through burlesque, women were challenging feminine physical norms perpetuated by the market, as well as negotiating their rightful place within the definition of beauty, sensuality, glamorousness and sexual allure.
As time went-by, I got more familiar with the scene… In certain instances, I was deceived (and even discomforted) by performances that I would have then judged as rather naïve uses of the burlesque aesthetic, and as gratuitous displays of bodies that could otherwise fit within the contemporary strip club standards It’s only while discussing with performers and familiarizing with the work of post-structuralist feminist writers and researchers that I realized burlesque was going beyond solely challenging the physical norms perpetuated by the market.
Not to say that all performances are subversive in any way, but I realized lots of them are an opportunity for artists to reclaim their oppressed sexuality and body (not just in term of its physical appearance but mostly in term of its experience) : a form of « écriture féminine » (Cixous) that entitle women to become sexual subjects by displaying their own, different, « erotic universe » rather than the sexualized objects they are often portrayed as in advertising (for instance), based on the realm of masculine fantasies. Like mentioned by Jacki Willson in her book « The Happy Stripper », it is worrying to see that young women define their sexuality through the sexual attraction they suscitate, rather than the desire they are likely to experience (and should acknowledge) as human beings. The irreverent attitude and immodesty of certain neo-burlesque artists towards sexuality is one of the aspects that now interest me the most in this whole subculture. With their wit and humour - and whether they are conscious about it or not - they are often contributing to the redefinition of sexuality in a feminine perspective (but, as well as sometimes, consolidating the statue quo in terms of female representation).
In a sense, this perspective is loaded with implications about the way we envision women representation in advertising.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
What is this all about?
This blog is about the neo-burlesque sub-culture, also known as burlesque revival. In short, neo-burlesque is a movement that emerged in the 1990’s, with performers revisiting vintage strip-tease performances, focusing on the “tease”, as opposed to the “strip” of modern day nude dancing bars.
This movement is a very intriguing phenomenon and suscitate several debates. On one hand, traditional feminists decry the deliberate exploitation of the female body, as on the other hand, some performers and members of the community claim that the reappropriation of this traditionally "male gaze" oriented performance is part of a feminist (or post-feminist) agenda and can thus lead to empowerment and emancipation.
My objective here is to explore how the performance of neo-burlesque artists challenges (and/or reifies) gendered ideals promoted by consumer culture. Stay tuned for more about the fascinating and 'sequined' world of 'shimmy' and 'bump-and-grind'!
This movement is a very intriguing phenomenon and suscitate several debates. On one hand, traditional feminists decry the deliberate exploitation of the female body, as on the other hand, some performers and members of the community claim that the reappropriation of this traditionally "male gaze" oriented performance is part of a feminist (or post-feminist) agenda and can thus lead to empowerment and emancipation.
My objective here is to explore how the performance of neo-burlesque artists challenges (and/or reifies) gendered ideals promoted by consumer culture. Stay tuned for more about the fascinating and 'sequined' world of 'shimmy' and 'bump-and-grind'!
Neo-burlesque movie coming soon
No Strings Attached
Producer/Director/Editor: Lisa Whitmer
TRT: 36:30 minutes
"Bursting with sex appeal and kitschy charm, No Strings Attached is a playful romp through the world of burlesque, from its origins in the late nineteenth century to its contemporary revival. The film provides a peek through feathers and glitter at the Scenic Sisters, a San Francisco duo, as they prepare for the annual, international Tease-o-Rama convention." - www.lisawhitmer.com
Monday, December 29, 2008
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)