THE CULTURAL POLITICS
OF GENDER PERFORMANCE
Role - Typography, Publication, Image-Making
Year - 2020
Client - Personal Project
Author - Benzi Zhang
Photographer - Du Uyen Nhu, Ali Yahya, Sharon McCutcheon, Jon Tyson, Paweł Czernyński, Morteza Yousefi, Kat J, Daria Sannikova, Aykut Eke, Dim 7, Engin Akyurt, Radek Pestka, Honey Fangs, Elvin Ruiz, Hanna Postova, Majid Rangraz, Kristine Tanne, Anna Elizabeth, Ameen Fahmy, Ha Nguyen, Tanya McCulloch, João Santos, Ramiro Pianarosa
The Cultural Politics of Gender Performance by Benzi Zhang talks about how homosexuality negatively suppressed by the supremacy of cultural values. the lack of its truthful representation leads to numerous misunderstandings and prevents it from developing a positive image in Chinese society. The project will convey a sense of being mistreated, misunderstood, as well as a sense of rebel, freedom, weirdness, femininity and being loud and proud against social condemnation, through expressive typography and creative image use.
THE CONCEPT
Homosexuality is like a bird in a cage, isolated, mistreated, misunderstood in Chinese society, craving to break free, to be understood, accepted, heard, and embraced. This will be visualized in the publication in a literal way using photo collages and expressive typography, to communicate the sense of ‘fe/male impersonation’, femininity and masculinity coexist in one being, the sense of rebel, being loud and proud against the social condemnation.
The colour blue and pink/red will be used dominantly in the publication as a representation of the stereotype saying 'boys wear blue, girls wear pink’. The combination of regular uppercase and italic lowercase letters is used as a decorative element for a more dynamic and playful look, as well as to communicate the sense of duality, masculinity and femininity, or the 'fe/male impersonation.'
THE SOLUTION
I'm a paragraph. Click here to add your own text and edit me. It’s easy. Just click “Edit Text” or double click me to add your own content and make changes to the font.
I'm a paragraph. Click here to add your own text and edit me. It’s easy. Just click “Edit Text” or double click me to add your own content and make changes to the font.
THE CONCEPT
Homosexuality is like a bird in a cage, isolated, mistreated, misunderstood in Chinese society, craving to break free, to be understood, accepted, heard, and embraced. This is visualized in the publication in a literal way using photo collages and expressive typography, to communicate the sense of ‘fe/male impersonation’, femininity and masculinity coexist in one being, the sense of rebel, being loud and proud against the social condemnation.
The colour blue and pink/red is used dominantly in the publication as a representation of the stereotype saying 'boys wear blue, girls wear pink’. The combination of regular uppercase and italic lowercase letters is used as a decorative element for a more dynamic and playful look, as well as to communicate the sense of duality, masculinity and femininity, or the 'fe/male impersonation.'
