Zoom
Brianna Howard
Boston University
Abstract
Throughout art history, the female nude has been an object of interest by painters and sculptures since the start of the Italian Renaissance. In Zoom, the objectification of the female body is defied and transformed into a powerful, strong-willed gaze. The woman looks at the viewer with her head slightly tilted up, as if she is challenging the viewer. The woman’s direct eye contact leaves the viewer feeling unsettled and perturbed. The traditional color palette and realistic style of the Renaissance are discarded in favor of a more expressionistic palette, emphasized through the sweeping brushstrokes. Overall, this work acts as a transition between the classical objectification of the female nude and contemporary values. In this work, the woman no longer acts as an object for a male gaze, but rather as an equal, and even challenger, of the male.
