Changing portrayal of women during the late modern period in regards to visual communication design

Abstract

The Industrial Revolution, world wars, the post-war periods, herewith called the Late Modern period, along with technological advances created a series of social changes in the world. As this transformation became more visible in social life, it has also manifested itself in visual forms such as painting, photography or posters. These social changes, influencing women’s lives directly, had also an impact on the manner they were addressed in visual forms. In this regard, this study is centred on the history of visual communication design with a visual cultural approach to observe a connection between the changes that occurred in social life during each period and their effects on the portrayal of women while at the same time it also examines these representations in relation to the development of poster design. Five images produced as advertising and posters ranging from the Industrial Revolution to the Second-Wave Feminism era were selected randomly and examined as illustrative case studies. Zeitgeist approach was used reviewing the periods and countries where these posters were produced. This small study exhibits how the style of women’s representation can transform depending on the changing conditions of the era.

DISCLOSURE STATEMENT

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

[1] The First Wave of Feminism took place in the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries in the Western world. In 1968 Martha Weinman Lear used the term wave of feminism for the first time.

[2] La Belle Époque: The Beautiful Age. A period between 1871–1914 in Western history.

[3] Demi-monde: Half-world. Women who have lost their reputation in society because of promiscuity or careless behaviour in the late 19^th century France.

[4] La Goulue: The Glutton. Stage name of Louise Weber.

[5] Valentin le Désossé: Valentin the Boneless. Stage name of Jacques Renaudin.

[6] Baby boom: A definition to state the high number of births.

[7] Martha Weinman Lear, wrote the article called ‘What do these women want?’ in New York Times Magazine, and used the term (Second-Wave of Feminism) for the first time in 1968.

[8] 2017 Women’s March: A march that took place in order to protest Donald Trump who was elected the President of the United States in 2017. While thousands of women took the streets in Washington, D.C. to protest Trump against racism, bigotry and intolerance, many rallying protest marches took place in the country and abroad.

[9] #BlackLivesMatter: A protest movement against police brutality that became one of the largest movements in US history after George Floyd was killed by the mistreatment of the police in the United States (2020).

[10] #MeToo: A movement initiated in Hollywood (2017) to articulate sexual harassment and rapes that women encountered. The hashtag set off a worldwide reaction, remained popular for weeks, and aimed to expose men who used their power and status to abuse women.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Vildan Acan

Vildan Acan completed her undergraduate and graduate program at Marmara University, Faculty of Fine Arts in Istanbul. She is currently a Ph.D. candidate at the Near East University, Art and Design program and works as a lecturer at the Cyprus International University, Faculty of Fine Arts, Design and Architecture since 2010.

Erdal Aygenc

Erdal Aygenc undertook his undergraduate degree at Gazi University, Faculty of Art Education. He completed his postgraduate and proficiency in Art at Hacettepe University, Faculty of Fine Arts. He began his academic career at the Near East University, Faculty of Fine Arts and Design in 2006 and continues to work there.