Standards of Women Beauty in Photography Art

This image is one of many photographs of model Tallulah Willis taken by American photographer Tyler Shields as part of his work for his second book “Provocateur” which was released on January 3d 2017. The book showcases many upcoming young people in the media spotlight, in daring and often controversial photographs. Most of Shields work is to create a reaction from the viewer and in an interview, he stated that “To me art is art and the medium is just the tool you choose to use. A great painting, a sculpture, a photograph, if created right can tap into a nerve inside your soul and that's the point of art. ” Shields work can therefore be said to invoke a response and this nude photograph definitely does, and through this artform he intends to create an emotion and elicit a feeling from someone who looks at the photograph.

The image itself shows a modern woman, who is in control of her nudity, posing with a cigarette and staring straight at the camera, and therefore the viewer. The woman (Willis) has a nipple piercing and an assortment of tattoos on her arms such as; an arrow, dice, a horseshoe and a mobile phone. Her hair is dyed a burnt orange and she is wearing minimal face makeup with a bright red lipstick. She is very much a modern liberated woman and draws parallels with fashion photographer Helmut Newton’s famous “They are Coming” photo in 1981. Both artists depict modern women who are strong in their identity, they are not shying away from the camera, rather they are fearless in their own skin and that alone.

This image I have chosen from Tyler Shields body of work is very reminiscent of Hannah Wilke’s self-portrait of herself in a similar photo, as both women are lying on their back with their breasts exposed and numerous tattoos covering their arms. This open and honest portrayal of a woman confident in her body translates through the image due to her holding the viewer’s gaze, and by staring at the camera her freedom and fluidity with her nudity allows for a striking and powerful allusion to how women are not allowing their bodies to be policed by society and its’ ideal of what feminine beauty should look like. I believe that this image shows how masculine and feminine ideals can be present in one person, that her gender does not mean that she is a passive young woman, rather that she is a dominant force in front of the camera Much like Wilke, Willis is an attractive woman, and is styled much like a pin-up girl, with her red lipstick, cigarette and striking hair. Unlike Wike however, Shields does not try to critique the natural view of beauty of the model with tiny vulvas made from chewing gum, but through her tattoos which are not normally in associated with feminine beauty. The rather unusual portrayal of a nude woman would not necessarily drive an erotic charge and may not be described as pornography as such as there is no physical response from the artist and model to carry a sexual charge.

Roger Scruton, who believes that art cannot be in any shape or form pornography, that there can be erotic “Art can be erotic and also beautiful, like a Titian Venus. But it cannot be beautiful and pornographic” therefore would not view this photograph by Shields as such. The eye contact with the photographer shows how the model, Willis is in control of her nude body, she is not embarrassed or shying away from the lens, but almost lazily holds the camera in her sight. The confidence reveals her assuredness of her exposed body which is, in my opinion not to be beautiful, but to send a message that standards of beauty have changed for women and how they are presented is to show their inner strength and resilience. Scruton would say that this modern twentieth century photo is moving away from art as there is less of a need to be based on beauty only, and he argues that is not necessarily a good thing and that there abandoning beauty. He states that “people have marginalised the pursuit of beauty, both from the arts and from everyday life. ”