"...that long road which led to Me."

[philmosophy]

As mentioned a while back, I wanted to do a quick study on self-portraits. I just think that it's interesting for a person to want to portray themselves in one moment in one specific amount of space. I did some reading concerning self-portraits, but nothing too in-depth. I know that some of you are artists, so I encourage you to contribute or

Comments

[c4us4_su1]

Your post ties in very well with some reading I've been doing lately. I've been reading "The Life of the Mind" by Hannah Arendt, and the section I've been enjoying lately is about how people present their external "appearances" or "semblances", but that this external "appearance" does not necessarily reflect the inner "I-myself" (the person's "true" identity"). Rather, the "appearances" people display are how they want to "appear" ("seem to be") in that situation. It may be very similar or very different to their internal "self". I think that goes along with what you were saying, using self-portraits as the "appearances" Arendt was discussing. Interesting

[philmosophy]

Thanks so much for your comment.

That book you mentions does indeed seem representative of ideas I was trying to convey in my tipsy, late-night post. You asked me if I focused on communities that reflected women's desires to appear weak, etc. No, I didn't. But I'm still at fault and need to expand my studies. I joined a self-portrait community where men and women both post self-portraits of themselves. Not all female posts were comicozzie-girl posts. And please be aware that my stolen term "comicozzie-girl" is a very broad category. And you're absolutely right about the props within a frame being as important as the makeup on the subject's face or the clothing on their back. For instance, if I came across a picture of a totally normal-looking, smiling, non-categorizable girl that was surrounded by comicozzie-like props such as unmade beds, pack of cigarettes, beer cans, a vase of dead flowers, dark shadows, etc., I'd categorize that whole picture as comicozzie

[c4us4_su1]

You asked me if I focused on communities that reflected women's desires to appear weak, etc. No, I didn't. But I'm still at fault and need to expand my studies.

I thought it was a good start to explaining your studies, especially considering the lateness of the hour and the tipsy-ness. :-)

I joined a self-portrait community where men and women both post self-portraits of themselves. Not all female posts were comicozzie-girl posts.

I didn't know there was such a community, that is interesting. I figured either that type of portrait was of particular interest to you, but now I think maybe the community draws a certain type of portrait (i.e., the themes you saw there). Very interesting.

Which leads me to another thought. Self-portraits are a kind of first (or last) impression. Would that justify these girls portraying themselves as dangerous to themselves and to others? But then again, with the artist knowing that she is making a first/last impression with her portrait speaks volumes if she chooses to portray herself as

[sophrosune16]

Great post. Was reading it and found your take on 'legs', the one of just the legs, interesting as my first thought was powerful. Something about the lighting, the posture screams dominance to me, and its a wonder that we could get two such different readings from the same image. The last one, black dress funny posture, amazes me with her disjointedness. It really looks like two people, two bodies fused together to form a whole, and lets face it I'm sure she doesn't feel whole. At first I'd like to view her as fun, funky, with a bit of an attitude, but then the more I look the more her photo disturbs me. Something about the separate nature of her parts

skinny legs and all

[ben_idle]

it appears no matter what a comicozzie girl does with her legs in a photographed self-portrait that includes her limbs she'll inescapably accentuate the thinness of her thighs. i wonder if theres an attempt to try to take possession of a quality valued by the culture at large with which they had little control over creating. the objectified attempting to own their objectification by... i got nun-chuk skills.
also is comicozzie in anyway linked to the japanese word anglicized as kamikaze and known to me through film and television as wwii japanese pilots using their planes and themselves as bombs - flying them into us warships?

Re: skinny legs and all

[philmosophy]

Yes, what I meant to say was Kamikaze, but I didn't know how to spell it. I googled what I thought was the correct spelling (dictionary.com didn't help) and I thought that what I came across was the correct way of spelling it. But yes, what I mean is, in fact, "Kamikaze". Like you said, the pilots were self-destructive, just as the girls I mentioned above make themselves appear.

A girl does not have to have thin thighs to be represented as Kamikaze. It's the intent to make something appear that way. Thin girls have thin thighs so will accentuate it to make themselves appear thinner and more Kamikaze. A bigger girl, though her thighs may not be thin, will pose in specific ways that give the illusion that she is thin. This idea is kind of archaic, though, don't you think? Girls think that the portrayal of suffering or burdens is to make themselves appear thin. What images are in their minds? Are they thinking of starving, hurting, aloof people that really are sick or in destitute? Why must you be thin, angular, hurt-looking to suffer