Taught from infancy that beauty is woman's scepter, the mind shapes itself to the body, and roaming round its gilt cage, only seeks to adorn its prison.

Mary Wollstonecraft

I am currently working on a piece of art for "Prov Creates" this Thursday. It centers around the above quote and explore ways in which this is seen. I have in particular taken three different ways we have "beautified" the female foot, making it feminine. I use some of the following images:









I am surprised at the examples we apply this feminine ideal to the foot. Gymnastics taught me to appreciate a good natural arch and toe point. Natural beauty, however, becomes destructive when a good element, such as smallness, becomes the measurement of the whole. I have been thinking about this issue for a while. Nothing symbols femininity to me more that a pair of pointe shoes. They are re enforced boxes you shove your toes into and then dance on in order to appear light. In practice you blister, bleed, reform your bones, and, if your are lucky enough, go numb during warm ups. Whether we are taught to keep silent about abuse, bend over backwards to please people or fulfil some sexual ideal, women are taught to shove themselves into reinforced shoes.

The element of feet is also symbolic as they are what supports our bodies, gives us the ability to put thoughts to action, and express ourselves by dance, sport, exploration and countless other things. To bind the feet in heels, pointes or the actual foot binding which happened in China, is to severely restrain a human. But just as Wollstonecraft says, we take this restraint and compete for the best expression of it. We actually compete to see who looks prettiest in our cage. We tear each other down to become the most oppressed and thus the most desired.