Performance Art: The Many Expectations of Women Today

In my performance art piece, "The Many Expectations of Women Today," I examine the double standards created by our greater society that pressure women of all ages to look and act in a specific way. I am exaggerating certain aspects of insecurity and self-confidence issues to prove the harsh and damaging implications of these standards that every girl and women subconsciously tend to live by.

This is an important idea to bring awareness to because as a college-age female, our looks are constantly being judged by those around us. I see so many of my friends struggle with body confidence, complaining about looking too fat or too ugly compared to the other girls they see around. I want to bring awareness to this issue because a lack of self-confidence can last a lifetime, and I want to prove the ridiculousness of some of the physically impossible standards so many girls try to reach.

I will be using myself and my friends to demonstrate the wide range of insecurities, what people think about themselves and how they view other women. I hope to show that others do not view individuals in the same negative light that they see in themselves, and those little insecurities are taking up unnecessary time and energy in everyday life. I want people to learn to embrace their natural selves without a negative view that can ruin an entire day.

The audience of my piece can profit by observing the exaggeration I present, maybe realizing for themselves that something about themselves that they are fixated on does not even catch the attention of other people. As women, we have many different sides to ourselves, and we have to learn how to embrace every single one.

In my video, I will include...

• Shoes: These shoes will represent the many different sides to myself and others, playing throughout the video to show different personas that we take on.
• Tape: To tape up insecurities and "hide" them or improve them to make them appear slimmer or to my standards.
• Interviews: To demonstrate insecurities that others have about themselves that many would never guess.
• Mirror: To dramatically show the self-judgement that many participate in on a daily basis.