How did I get here, in this modern age of fuzzy legs and hairy armpits? What were print media influences while coming-of-age for 3 generations of women in my family?
I was born in the mid 1980's. I remember staying with my aunt while I was taking swimming lessons around 14 years old and somehow an armpit and leg hair conversation arose with her husband?!. I have fuzzy memories but I remember using my aunt's razor in the shower and I had no idea what I was doing. My mom (born in the late 1960's) recalls being schooled at the age of 12 about "the whole process" while she was visiting a 15 yr old girl in her neighbourhood who was shaving her legs in her mom's bathroom sink. My mom told me that my maternal grandmother (born in the early 1940s) was a "first generation shaver" but also a "late bloomer rebel." At some point in life, we must all have learned about hair removal? What do you remember about that time?
Removing body hair has been a social norm for all 3 generations in my family, though I have been rebelling against it for nearly 10 years. I wanted to research print-making images reflecting body hair in current art, working backwards in time covering my mom and grandmother's generations. The images I have found have come out of the US, Canada, and the UK.
Current Research
Book Cover image from http://www.breannefahs.com
In 2022, Breanne Fahs, Professor of Women and Gender Studies at Arizona State University, published the book Unshaved: Resistance & Revolution in Women's Body Hair Politics. This book is an extensively researched history of temporary as well as long-term "body hair rebellions," and the role of art as activism for women and non-binary people (Fahs 26). Fahs explores the intersectionality of race, class, sexuality and gender and the consequences of this "hairy subject" in society as well as in our own minds.
This book was critical in my research as I found it difficult to unearth research, discourse or images of body hair in art, specifically print media. In fact, I had librarians from 3 universities helping me try to find 20th century print media with images of body hair present. Unshaved was even difficult to get my hands on but I rode my bike to Camosun College, got a free community library pass, and checked out the only copy available across Victoria libraries.
Body Hair in Print Media Now
Nowadays it is fairly easy to search online and find current print-makers making art focused on body hair. There are body hair zines and traditional print makers portraying body hair on diverse bodies. Body hair zines focus on resisting gender norms and normalizing body hair, in response to the repulsion some feel when seeing images of body hair, especially on femme bodies (Fahs 114-115).
Two Left Feet by Janice Quiles Reyes, 2019 [zine page excerpt: Hairy Not So Scary] http://www.janicequilesreyes.com/#/hairy-scary/
Janice Quiles Reyes' body hair zine, Hairy Not So Scary, imagines "the freedom from feeling that we MUST defur before going to the beach, playing sports, going to the gym or before going on a date or before having sex" (Fahs 115). It's about fighting back "against social norms that restrict women's bodily expressions" and less about whether we should or shouldn't be hairy or hairless (Fahs 115).
designer body by Chaitra Bangalore, 2017 [etching print] https://chairbangles.com/printmaking
Chaitra Bangalore, is a present day artist and educator based in Sacramento, California, who uses the following print-making techniques: mono print, collograph and plexiglass etching. The focus is on South Asian identity and "the idea of being alone and comfortable in one's body" (Bangalore).
Untitled by Chaitra Bangalore, https://chairbangles.com/printmaking
When Was the Last Time you Watched a DVD?
While I was at Camosun College I also picked up 2 DVDs: Reclaiming the Body: Feminist Art in America made by Michael Blackwood Productions in 1995, and W.A.R: !Women Art Revolution a film made over 42 years by artist, Lynn Hershman Leeson, released in 2011 by Zeitgeist Films. These DVDs were a refreshing look at art images, interviews of artists, and filming of exhibition details I had never seen before. It really put into context what was happening in the US while my mom was a young mom in rural Canada and I was coming of age. There were some print magazines that may have touched on the topic of body hair in print, such as, The Body Politic: A Magazine for Gay Liberation, published in Canada, but it was far from a mainstream practice.
In Reclaiming the Body, I watched parts of Bad Girls, an exhibition directed by Marcia Tucker at the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York City in 1994. Bad Girls, along with many other impactful feminist art discussed in the films, included a lot of performance art. I noticed a lot of photography based works with artists exploring nude self portraiture which focused on body hair. In W.A.R, Lynn Hershman Leeson said that the "personal became the political, and the very personal became art."
Blue Penis by Judith Braun, xerox on paper + blue vinyl report covers, 12'x14', 1994, in Bad Girls, https://www.mommybysilasandstathacos.com/2014/01/30/a-conversation-with-judith-braun/
Judith Braun (formerly Judith Weinperson) changed her last name from Weinman to Weinperson as a feminist act in the 90's. In an interview by Mother, Braun states that Bad Girls was inspired by her work when Marcia Tucker visited Braun's studio. Braun's artwork "Blue Penis" in the 1994 Bad Girls show covered a 12' x 14' space with xeroxed paper prints that fit together to show a very large scale photographed penis with a bushel of pubic hair.
At the time, women artists in NYC were not able to sell much art. Artist, Lynn Hershman-Leeson, said in her film, W.A.R: !Women Art Revolution, that she was a well known artist in the US but wasn't able to sell any art for over a decade. The first 2 works she sold were returned when the buyer found out the art was made by a woman, and essentially wouldn't be a 'good investment'. It was a struggle for feminist artists in the 1990's to not only produce art but progress in other roles due to lack of resources. Judith Braun's xerox prints with vinyl report covers affixed on top give a glossy finish for "Blue Penis" and "Sacred Order of the Burning Bush" (pictured below). This would have been very cost efficient to form such a substantial artwork.
Marcia Tucker said of Bad Girls that a criteria for artwork to be included in the exhibition was that they must be "funny." I think she wanted the works to be approachable and not be labeled as an 'angry feminist' exhibition. Post-modernism was discussed as a shift for these artists during the 1990's as they created and exhibited art that expressed a search for a new identity. There was a connection that feminist artists had with each other at the time that encouraged that new identity. There was an acceptance and glorification of the "low" and "ugly" parts that became a part of the art experience. I think that is why photography and performance based art was popular because there was nothing hiding. It was all out in the open.
Sacred Order of the Burning Bush by Judith Braun, xerox on paper, 30'x30', 1993, https://www.mommybysilasandstathacos.com/2014/01/30/a-conversation-with-judith-braun/
Political Activism + Feminist Etchings
My mom had her hands full in the 1980's as a teen mom with baby me. Types of print media influences for her at the time were likely mainstream magazines or books from the small library in the village we lived just outside of.
Meanwhile, Lisa Taylor, (PhD, who is now Head of Media at a University in the UK) was a punk-ish young person exploring print-making for her undergraduate art show in the UK. Lisa Taylor's autobiographical article, Etchings from the Attic: looking back at feminist print-making from the 1980's, recalls the influence of the Women's Liberation Movement and what informed her print making works (701).
"It was as if she had painted with the brush between her toes...", by Lisa Taylor, etching, 1987, https://doi.org/10.1080/09612025.2015.1132873
Lisa Taylor chose to use etching at the time as it was historically linked to satire and she wanted to provide humour on the topic of "the disparaging treatment of the female artist" (701). Taylor "reverses the usual subject/object dichotomy" in the above print, reversing the typical roles of painter and subject (704). Looking back, Taylor critiques the choice of including large breasts as a contradiction and states that was a problem with her representational strategies in the above print (717).
Taylor's autobiographical persona in printmaking shows body hair grown as a statement of equality with the hairiness of men (714). She states that her friend group at the time band together to maintain body hair "especially aimed at challenging the boyfriends" (Taylor 714). This may be depicted in Taylor's print, Close up of Series One.
Close up of Series One, by Lisa Taylor, etching, 1987, https://doi.org/10.1080/09612025.2015.1132873
The 70's
Chrysalis magazine cover, 1977, https://eastofborneo.org/articles/second-life-chrysalis-magazine/
The 70's were before my time, my mom was a child and my grandmother had started a family in a small village in northern Alberta. Print media influences would likely have been popular magazines.
Chrysalis was a magazine mentioned in the film, W.A.R: !Women Art Revolution, and I found the first issue from 1977 available online attached to an article by Jenni Sorkin at East of Borneo, which publishes print media that is hard to track down otherwise. Chrysalis was a feminist magazine made by influential artists typically around Los Angeles and was in print from 1977 to 1980, for only 10 issues (Sorkin). Unfortunately it stopped printing due to "lack of funds" (Sorkin). In the first issue pictured above, Arlene Raven wrote that it was "a pivotal moment for the women's movement" as feminist artists were working hard in different institutions, and creating their own spaces for learning and making art when what existed wasn't working (Chrysalis 49). Though with all the effort, some people were burning out (Chrysalis 49). There was a message of hope as Raven noted that feminist artists were "working to create a culture that honors women's experience[s]" (Chrysalis 51). There was momentum for women artists to fight against the devaluation of their artworks as well take care of themselves by keeping open communication with each other and staying connected. Raven points out the offence of the male gaze and how feminist art in the 1970's was for "feminist spectators" (Chrysalis 52). Rather than seeing the body (and all that is a part of it) as sexualized, a new way of seeing was materializing.
Backwards in time: A Brief History of Hair
In the late 1960's, the Black Power Movement and Women's Movement influenced the feminist scene and propelled a rebellion against body hair removal (Fahs 11).
Also during the 1960's, the Civil Rights Movement and Vietnam War influenced a revolution in feminist artists ("W.A.R."). Artist, Harmony Hammond, stated that it was a time where they had permission to be who they really were ("W.A.R.").
In 1964 "98% of all American women ages 15 - 44 routinely shaved their legs" (Fahs 11). This new trend occurred when my grandmother was a young adult and what my mom calls "a first generation shaver" in our family.
Due to World War II and nylon shortages, by 1941, it more likely that leg hair would be shaved as it was trendy to be 'smooth' and hairless (Fahs 11).
In the 1930's many women removed body hair due to beauty books encouraging body hair removal for cleanliness (Fahs 10). There was an overall "assault on women's bodies" to "feel self conscious about all aspects of their so-called hygiene" (Fahs 10-11).
The 1910's and 1920's is when clothing fashion changed to reveal armpits and legs, bringing "a new self-consciousness" about armpit hair (Fahs 10).
"Home bathroom sets" in 1908 included mirrors and at the same time Gillette attempted to "transform the market and introduce shaving to women" (Fahs 9).
End Notes
Body hair portrayed in print media has been connected to feminist art making practices. North American feminist artists through the 20th century have been accused of being "intellectually esoteric and somewhat difficult" while feminist artists in the UK were seen as appealing to a wider audience but critiqued for being "non-political" (Taylor 706). It was clear to me in my research that there were many hurdles for feminist artists in the 20th century including burnout and lack of funding. The strong social norms, specifically to do with shaving and hairlessness, are rooted in colonialism, capitalism, advertising, and pop culture. One critique of the predominantly white feminist movement is the lack of inclusivity of gender and intersectionality of race.
While researching feminist print media in an urban context I enjoyed matching the timeline of the 3 generations of women in my family. I appreciate the print-makers, feminist artists, and scholars that I researched for this article. Each generation learns, shares, and connects to one another even though we seem far from each other.
Artist, Jacqueline Hayden, in the film, Reclaiming the Body, urges us to accept ourselves, to see the "internal sense of the beautiful" and "challenge the notion of ideal beauty."
Bibliography
Bangalore, Chaitra. designer body. 2017. https://chairbangles.com/printmaking/.
Bangalore, Chaitra. Let’s Get Hairy: Women, Body Hair and Stigma in Arts Education. https://indd.adobe.com/view/4e9f7adf-317d-4469-8b55-3700ad81ab6c.
Bangalore, Chaitra. Untitled. https://chairbangles.com/printmaking/.
Brand, Peg. “Feminist Art Epistemologies: Understanding Feminist Art.” Hypatia, vol. 21, no. 3, 2006, pp. 166–89. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/3810957.
Braun, Judith. Blue Penis. 1994, Bad Girls show at New Museum of Contemporary Art, NYC, https://www.mommybysilasandstathacos.com/2014/01/30/a-conversation-with-judith-braun.
Braun, Judith. Sacred Order of the Burning Bush. 1993, Kunztlerhaus Bethanian, Berlin, Germany, https://www.mommybysilasandstathacos.com/2014/01/30/a-conversation-with-judith-braun.
Fahs, Breanne. Unshaved: Resistance and Revolution in Women's Body Hair Politics. University of Washington Press, 2022, Seattle.
Fahs, Breanne. Unshaved. http://www.breannefahs.com.
Finlay, Nancy. “American Printmaking in the Twentieth Century.” The Princeton University Library Chronicle, vol. 42, no. 2, 1981, pp. 104–12. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/26402233.
Hershman-Leeson, Lynn. W.A.R: !Women Art Revolution. New York, NY, DVD edition, Zeitgeist Films, 2012.
Holton, Mark. “On the Geographies of Hair: Exploring the Entangled Margins of the Bordered Body.” Progress in Human Geography, vol. 44, no. 3, June 2020, pp. 555–71. EBSCOhost, https://doi.org/10.1177/0309132519838055.
Jolly, Penny Howell. "Hair: Untangling a Social History." The Frances Young Tang Teaching Museum and Art Gallery, Skidmore College, 2004, https://creativematter.skidmore.edu/art_his_fac_schol/8.
Kokoli, Alexandra M. The Feminist Uncanny in Theory and Art Practice. Bloomsbury Academic, 2016. EBSCOhost, https://eds.s.ebscohost.com/eds/ebookviewer/ebook/bmxlYmtfXzEyNTkxMTlfX0FO0?sid=936f7954-6fbd-4e8e-9597-6466aee5a156@redis&vid=2&hid=/&format=EB.
Lesnik-Oberstein, Karín, editor. The Last Taboo: Women and Body Hair. Manchester University Press, 2006. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt155j918.
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McGinn, Karin. “Mis(s)representations: Reimagining Women With Collage and Paint.” (2017). doi:10.35010/ecuad:13454, https://ecuad.arcabc.ca/islandora/object/ecuad:13454.
Quiles Reyes, Janice. Two Left Feet. 2019, http://www.janicequilesreyes.com/#/hairy-scary/.
Silas, Susan; and Chrysanne Stathacos. "A Conversation with Judith Braun." Mommy, Jan. 2014, https://www.mommybysilasandstathacos.com/2014/01/30/a-conversation-with-judith-braun/.
Sorkin, Jenni. “Second Life: Chrysalis Magazine.” East of Borneo, October 31, 2011, Los Angeles, https://eastofborneo.org/articles/second-life-chrysalis-magazine/.
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Taylor, Lisa. “Etchings from the Attic: Looking Back at Feminist Print-Making from the 1980s.” Women’s History Review, vol. 25, no. 5, Oct. 2016, pp. 701–22. EBSCOhost, https://doi.org/10.1080/09612025.2015.1132873.
Wawrzyńczak, Anni Doyle. Bitumen River Gallery – Evolution and Early Years. 1st ed., Australian National University Press, 2020, pp. 105–62. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctv1bvnd5m.10.
Whiteley, Rebecca. "Spratt’s Flaps: Midwifery, Creativity, and Sexuality in Early Nineteenth-Century Visual Culture", British Art Studies, Issue 19, 2021, https://doi.org/10.17658/issn.2058-5462/issue-19/rwhiteley.
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Written by Andream
June 20, 2023