Skeleton

skeleton girl

 

Source: http://misguided-humanity.tumblr.com/post/15976065816/my-goal

I found this picture on tumblr several months ago and ever since then, my mind keeps coming back to it. The girl in the picture is removing her shirt, revealing a skeleton where flesh should be. This simple picture calls up so many different issues.

First, I believe this drawing symbolizes how brainwashed today’s youth is in regards to body image. The girl featured in the picture illustrates the “ideal” shape. Although I agree that her shape is beautiful, too, I contest the idea that hers is the only admirable one. Allow me to compare this piece of artwork to sculptures from the Greco-Roman era.

Crouching Aphrodite

 

Source: http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Nuta_CQvImI/TEueOtItPOI/AAAAAAAACj0/64ZgAeO14yg/s1600/Crouching-Aphrodite,-Venus,-Louvre-unrestored.jpg

This is a sculpture of the “Crouching Aphrodite” in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. Aphrodite was the Greek goddess of love. The Romans considered her to be the quintessence of beauty. Notice that the way she is crouched is causing some ripples of skin on her stomach. This might seem odd to humans now that this sculpture represented the perfect body. That is because our vision of beauty has become warped. The sculpture and the drawing from above illustrate two different body shapes, but neither one is better than the other.

Second, the drawing symbolically illustrates the effect that some eating disorders have on the body. There are many different forms of eating disorders, but this picture hits on those that make you thinner (yes, there are some that do not). Disorders such as anorexia and bulimia become addictions as potent as drugs and alcohol.  Men and women get sucked into them and the disorder becomes an unbreakable habit. This eventually wears them down to the bone. Literally.

Last, the skeleton in the picture has striking implications. Skeletons are symbols of death. The girl in the picture is obviously alive because she is performing the action of taking her shirt off, and yet underneath her shirt is a skeleton. This suggests that she is both living and dead at the same time. The idea that she is “dead” underneath the surface speaks to the severe mental strain people with eating disorders experience. Many simply go through the motions of their lives but feel nothing on the inside.

 

 

8 thoughts on “Skeleton

  1. Cara Dore Post author

    @tdm5249 Yes, I agree with your analysis on the girl’s face. I wish I had thought of that! Even though she has the “ideal” body, she is still unhappy, revealing the disconnect between “beauty” and true happiness. The issue with finding information on the artist for this piece of art is that I found it on tumblr, so there was a high amount of anonymity for it. But I agree that it would probably be very insightful to know more about the artist. 🙂
    @Kaylie Maines I was considering going on a thigh gap rant, but I figured that would go on for too long on this blog haha. I certainly have heard my fair share of the thigh gap arguments on tumblr, though. It’s very disheartening to actually hear people in person express how jealous they are of someone’s thigh gap. Excepting some naturally thin people, it is unhealthy to have a thigh gap. Most people don’t!

  2. cpm5254

    I think this is a really great piece of art. I think it is deplorable how society puts these pressures on young women. Personally, I think girls often look better without make up and I see many girls trying to conform to society’s vision that I don’t find attractive at all. It is much more attractive to be yourself. The average American woman is 5’4″ and 140lbs, the average model is 5’11” and 117lbs. This does terrible things to society and the confidence of young women.

  3. tdm5249

    In today’s society, there is an incredibly high priority set on physical appearance. Even if we don’t like this statement, we cannot argue its validity. Even though physical appearance is important for attracting partners, it should not be nearly as important as it currently is. In an ideal world, it would be the inside that counts. Often times, both men and women will make numerous attempts, such as makeup or even surgery, to fix what they think is wrong with their appearance. I believe that in the process, they lose a part of themselves and thus lose some capacity for happiness because they cannot be content as they are. Doing so naturally leads to an unhappy life. This is where the picture comes in. I agree with your comments about it, but I would like to highlight the girl’s face. In my eyes, she looks pained and disconnected from the world. I think this serves as commentary as to what trying to achieve the “ideal” body can do to a person. By depicting a miserable but skinny girl, the artist has made us consider the relationship between happiness and physical appearance. Based off the drawing, I concluded that physical “beauty” cannot make people happy if they are not happy with themselves. Would you agree with the emphasis I have placed on the girl’s facial expression to convey meaning?

    In future blogs, I would recommend trying to find some background information about the artist in order to provide some context about the piece. I think this could help with analysis.

  4. ayc5541

    The art you chose is beautiful, and indeed says a lot about the struggles of many young women in our society. As you mentioned, what “beauty” means for society has changed so much throughout the past, and current weight preferences are consequently unhealthy and upsetting. Though in response to your last sentence, I wouldn’t say that those with eating disorders feel nothing on the inside, but rather (in perhaps somewhat dramatic terms) void of happiness and consumed by negativity.

  5. mjh5696

    I love the piece of sculpture you chose to show the contrast in what was beautiful back in the Greco-Roman era (reality), and what is considered beautiful now (a near-impossibility of reality). I find the sculpture much more beautiful due to its gorgeous sculpting; to think that that was once a block of marble is pretty astounding! So happy someone’s doing an art blog, can’t wait to read about more artsy things in the future.

  6. jmd6054

    I think it is really interesting on how the perception of beauty has changed throughout time. I have often seen the statue of the “Crouching Aphrodite” in books and on TV but knew little of what it stood for in regards to beauty. I think society as a whole would greatly benefit if everyone could see how the idea of beauty has changed and maybe this would cause people to reevaluate what they consider is beautiful.

  7. Brandon Benner

    It’s almost tragic for me to watch what society is doing to the young women of this age. I amend that, it IS tragic. As a man, I cannot say I understand the sorts of pressures that our society puts on a girl our age, but from what I’ve seen, they’re certainly heavy. Anything but clear skin is horrific, a face without make-up is atrocious, and – the most evident to us today – true beauty only exists in being precisely 98.5 lbs, no matter what your body type may be. This is a topic which has undergone a lot of deep thought in my mind, but I digress. You provide a very sharp analysis and comparison to prior viewpoints. It’s something I can certainly appreciate, and I wish more people could understand these contrasts.

  8. Kaylie Maines

    I love the piece you chose to focus on this week. As a tumblr user I’m sure you’ve seen the trending “thigh-gap” obsession. It’s really quite terrifying to see girls malnourishing themselves just to fit the current image of “beauty”. Unfortunately, people tend to forget that beauty used to be synonymous with healthy.

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