Welcome to Gender, Sexuality, and Visual Art!

Within this blog, we will be discussing four types of visual art and how they relate to gender and sexuality. First, Jason Vanmill will be delving into the idea of film. Second, Alysha Reed will be exploring the realms of photography. Third, Kristen Todd will be peering into the world of sculpture. And finally, Samantha McCracken will be diving into the world of graphic design. Each of these four topics will be explored as it pertains to topics such as gender roles, stereotypes (in gender, race, ethnicity, and sexuality), gender hierarchies, privilege, and human sexuality.

When considering Gender and Sexuality in our society, it is important to look at what gender and sexuality are often coined as. Typically we believe the term gender is used to mean male or female; plain and simple with no grey areas, it means our biology. In actuality, gender is a personal conception (or identity) of oneself as either male or female. Through the culture and an individual's environment, a human being grows up and eventually determines what he or she identifies as. An individual's sex, on the other hand, is related more to biology and anatomy. When determining the sex of an individual, it is based upon if he or she was born as a female with female anatomy or if he or she was born as a male with one x chromosome and one y chromosome. Sexuality, on the other hand, is the attraction, or orientation/preference, of an individual. Like gender, this is an identity. It has a lot to do with desire and an individual's behavior, though these two things may not always line up. For example, an individual may desire another individual sexually (which will most likely line up with their orientation), but on the other hand, an individual may kiss a person of the same gender to make others jealous (which most likely doesn't line up with their orientation). With all this laid out, it is crucial to keep in mind that both "gender" and "sexuality" are slippery slopes and may be easily confused with other meanings.

Through the use of academic journals, websites, newspapers, and more, we will question and explore long-held beliefs and ideas as they relate to film, photography, sculpture, and graphic design. By comparing gender roles of today's American society to that of prior years, and also to that of various other countries around the globe, we will get a better understanding of how art functions in different parts of the world to express beliefs and values. Likewise, by scrutinizing these various forms of visual art, we will be able to come to conclusions about how ideas of sexuality, and changes in these ideas, are expressed through art in various parts of the world as well as different times in history.

Keep posted for updates from Jason, Alysha, Kristen, and Samantha, as they delve into the realms of film, photography, sculpture, and graphic design respectively, to gather a better understanding of how gender and sexuality function within the world of visual art!