One of the major ongoing controversies in comics is the drawing of
women. The problem usually breaks down to some variation of
objectification especially in the super-hero area. In order to
ameliorate this situation it may be interesting to take a look at the
reasons that women are usually drawn so that the illustrator can
debate the way he draws them, and thus make a better decision on how
to draw.
It should be noted that I'm not saying to not draw women (or even men) this way, just that one should consider how they are drawn in order to avoid controversy.
10) It's just easier to draw a women with minimal clothes.
Given the choice between a muscle structure and clothing folds, most illustrators would prefer the muscles. An arm can defined with a few simple lines, and an entire body can be done in a relative few lines compared to clothing details. For an artist under a tight deadline, the simpler solution is usually best, especially when it saves a lot of time.
9) There's a certain mythic quality to nudity.
Comic books are about legendary characters, and you can't go more legendary than character designs based on the ancient myths. The problem is that they didn't wear a lot of clothes back then, especially when they were active. If you were attending a party or lounging around the toga worked, but not so much in the arena or at the gym. This applies even today, when Olympians wear the minimal clothing for their sport.
8) It is more functional.
Obviously putting a woman in heels for battle is a bad idea, and the most gorgeous dress in the world can be a liability when she is being chased. However, for a character with martial arts who wants to use them a minimal costume works far better than even comfortable clothes. In fact, loose clothes can be a combat liability when fighting someone with large piercing weapons; the clothes can be used to pin the character down. Also, it can slow a character down; just ask Mockingbird (Bobbi Morse) about running through a bramble some time about those huge flaps of fabric. Sure, Spandex has its own problems, but at least it doesn't slow you down.
7) Victorian dress looks great, but it wasn't designed with an active woman in mind.
It may look pretty, but Victorian garb was designed with the idea that good women didn't move much. Also, it was ideal for slowing women down in another way: When you needed another person to dress you couldn't do anything naughty. This all makes Victorian fashion, and a lot of women's fashion for that matter, great to look at but not that great for active women. It also makes it more difficult to draw than a T-shirt and a pair of jeans. Yeah, this is more addressed to those that re-design costumes with a Victorian concept, but I feel it had to be addressed.
6) Women themselves like to dress sexy.
Women put a lot of time and effort into their appearance and they like to be appreciated. This applies double if the woman has been putting serious time at the gym; dressing sexy is part of the fun. This is why women wear tight pants, flowing dresses, and strapless dresses. However, too many people get nervous when a woman shows a little skin; these are people that would die from culture shock if they ever stepped foot in Europe or even at an American beach. This is something worth considering.
5) If it's good for the gander, why not the goose?
It never fails to amuse me that you can have men running around in loincloths, but the second a woman shows up in a bikini feminists scream "SEXIST!" I like my Conan the Barbarian, and part of that means Red Sonja. I know it's a simple argument, but if skimpy clothes work on the men, they should work on the women as well. It's a consistency issue; if the men are wearing comfortable clothes, why should the women be restricted to clothes that are pure bulk? Wouldn't that take away her competitive edge just so someone is comfortable with her wardrobe? I guess you can dress for the occasion or win, but not both.
4) Dressing how you want is a big part of equality.
I just find it sort of weird that sexual liberation is part of the feminist movement, and I think it would be hard to argue that the Sexual Revolution was overall a bad thing as it was a major assist in some areas of the Civil Rights movement as a whole. In fact, part of the reason fought for equal rights is to get out of the ridiculous fashions that kept them literally constrained. Ironically, however, you have some feminists start screaming “SEXIST!” whenever a woman is pictured in anything less than full winter wear. Seriously confusing when you think about it.
3) And what about the other kind of fun?
Sometimes you just want to parody the whole situation, and that means using a sexy woman who has been exaggerated. We need to be able to make fun of different aspects of the comics industry, as well as other media, and that means that we need to be able to draw them as well. The most notable example of this is that Power Girl (she of the boob window) is used as an example of the problem of how women are dressed in comics, as she's a straight satire of some of comic's...um...bigger issue. Someone apparently needs to get a sense of humor.
2) What about current fashions?
This sort of goes both ways, but I'm looking specifically at the tightness of current fashions. A lot of women wear tight clothes both on the street and in social situations, and that's ignoring the sheer number of bikinis on the beaches and near the pools. I just find it interesting that people want more realistic art in comics but hold illustrators to a Puritanical standard of dress that obviously doesn't exist in real life.
1) Women should be allowed to dress for the situation.
Man in a shower? No problem. Locker room scene of guys after exercise? Cool. Teenage boys changing into fighting uniforms? See it everyday. Guy in bed in nothing but boxers? That's natural. But the second you show a woman hanging around in a loose tank top and shorts, no matter how hot the weather is, and it's obviously an unrealistic portrayal of the woman in question. There are just times when its natural to wear minimal clothing and it would feel weird if the woman in question was wearing a parka.
Obviously I'm a pervert, but I don't think women should be limited to loose bulky clothing. As long as it's not being done for the sake of exploitation then there should be no real problem with how a woman is dressed, especially if she's dressed appropriately for the situation. Just be respectful about how you do it and it should be fine.
It should be noted that I'm not saying to not draw women (or even men) this way, just that one should consider how they are drawn in order to avoid controversy.
10) It's just easier to draw a women with minimal clothes.
Given the choice between a muscle structure and clothing folds, most illustrators would prefer the muscles. An arm can defined with a few simple lines, and an entire body can be done in a relative few lines compared to clothing details. For an artist under a tight deadline, the simpler solution is usually best, especially when it saves a lot of time.
9) There's a certain mythic quality to nudity.
Comic books are about legendary characters, and you can't go more legendary than character designs based on the ancient myths. The problem is that they didn't wear a lot of clothes back then, especially when they were active. If you were attending a party or lounging around the toga worked, but not so much in the arena or at the gym. This applies even today, when Olympians wear the minimal clothing for their sport.
8) It is more functional.
Obviously putting a woman in heels for battle is a bad idea, and the most gorgeous dress in the world can be a liability when she is being chased. However, for a character with martial arts who wants to use them a minimal costume works far better than even comfortable clothes. In fact, loose clothes can be a combat liability when fighting someone with large piercing weapons; the clothes can be used to pin the character down. Also, it can slow a character down; just ask Mockingbird (Bobbi Morse) about running through a bramble some time about those huge flaps of fabric. Sure, Spandex has its own problems, but at least it doesn't slow you down.
7) Victorian dress looks great, but it wasn't designed with an active woman in mind.
It may look pretty, but Victorian garb was designed with the idea that good women didn't move much. Also, it was ideal for slowing women down in another way: When you needed another person to dress you couldn't do anything naughty. This all makes Victorian fashion, and a lot of women's fashion for that matter, great to look at but not that great for active women. It also makes it more difficult to draw than a T-shirt and a pair of jeans. Yeah, this is more addressed to those that re-design costumes with a Victorian concept, but I feel it had to be addressed.
6) Women themselves like to dress sexy.
Women put a lot of time and effort into their appearance and they like to be appreciated. This applies double if the woman has been putting serious time at the gym; dressing sexy is part of the fun. This is why women wear tight pants, flowing dresses, and strapless dresses. However, too many people get nervous when a woman shows a little skin; these are people that would die from culture shock if they ever stepped foot in Europe or even at an American beach. This is something worth considering.
5) If it's good for the gander, why not the goose?
It never fails to amuse me that you can have men running around in loincloths, but the second a woman shows up in a bikini feminists scream "SEXIST!" I like my Conan the Barbarian, and part of that means Red Sonja. I know it's a simple argument, but if skimpy clothes work on the men, they should work on the women as well. It's a consistency issue; if the men are wearing comfortable clothes, why should the women be restricted to clothes that are pure bulk? Wouldn't that take away her competitive edge just so someone is comfortable with her wardrobe? I guess you can dress for the occasion or win, but not both.
4) Dressing how you want is a big part of equality.
I just find it sort of weird that sexual liberation is part of the feminist movement, and I think it would be hard to argue that the Sexual Revolution was overall a bad thing as it was a major assist in some areas of the Civil Rights movement as a whole. In fact, part of the reason fought for equal rights is to get out of the ridiculous fashions that kept them literally constrained. Ironically, however, you have some feminists start screaming “SEXIST!” whenever a woman is pictured in anything less than full winter wear. Seriously confusing when you think about it.
3) And what about the other kind of fun?
Sometimes you just want to parody the whole situation, and that means using a sexy woman who has been exaggerated. We need to be able to make fun of different aspects of the comics industry, as well as other media, and that means that we need to be able to draw them as well. The most notable example of this is that Power Girl (she of the boob window) is used as an example of the problem of how women are dressed in comics, as she's a straight satire of some of comic's...um...bigger issue. Someone apparently needs to get a sense of humor.
2) What about current fashions?
This sort of goes both ways, but I'm looking specifically at the tightness of current fashions. A lot of women wear tight clothes both on the street and in social situations, and that's ignoring the sheer number of bikinis on the beaches and near the pools. I just find it interesting that people want more realistic art in comics but hold illustrators to a Puritanical standard of dress that obviously doesn't exist in real life.
1) Women should be allowed to dress for the situation.
Man in a shower? No problem. Locker room scene of guys after exercise? Cool. Teenage boys changing into fighting uniforms? See it everyday. Guy in bed in nothing but boxers? That's natural. But the second you show a woman hanging around in a loose tank top and shorts, no matter how hot the weather is, and it's obviously an unrealistic portrayal of the woman in question. There are just times when its natural to wear minimal clothing and it would feel weird if the woman in question was wearing a parka.
Obviously I'm a pervert, but I don't think women should be limited to loose bulky clothing. As long as it's not being done for the sake of exploitation then there should be no real problem with how a woman is dressed, especially if she's dressed appropriately for the situation. Just be respectful about how you do it and it should be fine.
2 comments:
In response to number 55555555, you have to bear in mind that the men who are drawn overly-muscled and in revealing attire is actually not a depiction of sexiness, but of a male power-fantasy. Believe it or not, it is still an image that appeals more toward men than it does to women.
And honestly, most women are not attracted to men as muscled-out as we see in comics, just the same as when a woman is drawn with gargantuan breasts, heterosexual males don't *actually* find that appealing. It is taken to too far of an extreme.
Definitely. Most women prefer a sleeker man. However, #5 had nothing to do sexual preference, merely making the point that if all the warrior men are in loincloths, then so should the warrior women. It's more of a design consideration; characters in the same function should have roughly the same look.
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