Jana C. Perez

Objectify
color photography, Epson archival print
14 x 24 in.

Objectify is a series of photographic diptychs which uses the female body paired with objects to satirize advertised ideas about women. At first glance, these images seem curiously combined as the viewer seeks a connection. The poses of the female body are familiar from advertising; a waist with measuring tape, a leg with shaving cream, a hand showcasing an engagement ring. It is the combination of the pose with object that changes the meaning of both and creates a curiously familiar, humorous, and simultaneously disturbing connection. In addition to the visual comparison of imagery, a word, placed within a divisional black line, complicates the composition’s inferred meaning. The contrast of the word, not immediately visible, surprises the viewer and adds a verbal dimension to the visual.

While the works create a sense of discovery and humor, nagging feelings about the familiarity of each connection linger. The pervasive nature of the visual and verbal connections echo the pervasive nature of advertised imagery in our culture. Ideas of restraints, constraints and emancipation lurk behind the humor evoked from objectify.

© Jana C. Perez