Comments on: Bum Steer

By: piny

piny — Thu, 29 Dec 2005 19:43:23 +0000

All patriarchy-blaming aside, there’s a whole other annoying aspect to this:

It’s not a new field of study _at all_. Anyone working in any field related to visual arts or design already knows all this stuff. You learn it over a period of several years, through a combination of lesson plans and trial-and-error experimentation. By the time you get any kind of degree, you know how color works on the eye, what draws attention, what shunts it away, how we perceive size and movement and importance and tension and object relationships in a visual field. This is particularly true of fashion designers.

Most of the rules are pretty consistent. If there’s a small circle in a large field, your gaze will stick to it. Blue is calming. Red is exciting. Bright colors pull objects forward and make them bigger; dark colors push them back and make them smaller.

There are hundreds of books expounding theories on all of this stuff, thousands of artists who’ve developed their own personalized visual systems, and plenty of scientists who’ve conducted their own experiments. The human butt–excuse me, the _female_ butt–is gonna follow the same rules as every other object ever framed, costumed, or portrayed.

By: frippy

frippy — Thu, 29 Dec 2005 17:42:30 +0000

Well, to be fair, my question was rhetorical since, while I have a boyfriend, I wear the same baggy thrift store sweaters and paint-stained jeans year in and year out and have, over the years since my teens, phased out hair styling products, makeup, jewelry, and high heels. Now I’m comfortable and spend my money on more interesting things. I, too, am amazed by Sex and the City — if I had several hundred dollars at my disposal, I’d spend it on something other than a sadistic looking pair of pumps you can only pair up with one article of clothing. Me, I wear the same pair of men’s shoes all the time. They may put me on somebody’s stupid “Fashion Don’ts” list but hey, at least I’m not a sprained ankle waiting to happen.

By: Erin

Erin — Thu, 29 Dec 2005 12:35:16 +0000

Until a few years ago, I thought that the “does my butt look big in this?” line was a joke. I couldn’t believe that people were actually that concerned (where people = women, I guess). I was so sad when I found out that it’s not just a hackneyed sitcom line.

Then again, when I was asked why I never dress up or wear makeup to work, I told a coworker “I guess I just don’t give a fuck if anyone here thinks I’m pretty,” so I may not be right on the cutting edge of the crossroads between pop culture and fashion, you know?

By: Polly Phonic

Polly Phonic — Thu, 29 Dec 2005 11:14:27 +0000

“One of the greatest female sartorial dilemmas - â€˜does my bum look big in this?â€™ - is to be answered by a team of researchers.”

“Does my bum look big in this?” isn’t a dilemma, it’s a catchphrase from the Fast Show. Surely there’s more important things they could be spending their research money on.

By: ae

ae — Thu, 29 Dec 2005 06:21:23 +0000

Sometimes I think I’m not long for this world. A “scientific” study re: how clothing affects the appearance of a woman’s ass? I wonder if it is sponsored by the Fashion Industrial Complex. Feh.

Concerned w/ women’s self-esteem, are they? Then attack the problem at its core! Shit. Women don’t need advice on wearing the pants, if’n y’all know what I mean.

By: emjay

emjay — Thu, 29 Dec 2005 04:17:12 +0000

Well, to all outward appearances I am white, but if I was checking out your butt in the Diesel, you’re welcome. I have been known to appreciate butts of varying sizes. I also often appreciate the rest of the woman, including her intelligence, wit, kindness, or whatever other positive qualities she may possess, so I’m not apologizing for objectifying anyone.

By: Ms Kate

Ms Kate — Thu, 29 Dec 2005 02:38:37 +0000

Helloooo! This is beyond sexist - it is also ethnically insensitive!

I have a big butt and I wear it proudly, particularly when I’ve been biking a lot and it gets a nice round contour to it. It may not be the approved BarbiButt of white anorexic patriarchy, but I’ve noticed many an ethnic male (and female in the Diesel Cafe) digging the glutes with both polite silent and impolite verbal admiration. (I don’t mind the lookers, and pointedly ignore the catcallers).

In other words, there are plenty of men and some women who appreciate a fine caboose. The rest can just fuck themselves.

The bigger the cushion … the sweeter the pushin’ (SpinalTap)

By: Ms Kate

Ms Kate — Thu, 29 Dec 2005 02:32:56 +0000

Actually, I know a few women, including myself, who do ask that question.

By: kathe

kathe — Thu, 29 Dec 2005 02:06:00 +0000

I have a noticeably big butt, and no one has ever complained about it. I did ask my guy once if something made my butt look big, and when he said “Yes” I said “Good.” He agreed.

By: emjay

emjay — Wed, 28 Dec 2005 19:28:15 +0000

I’m feeling so smug today. First I got to gloat in the Christmas thread about being Jewish and not having to decorate, and now I am feeling the same way about being an androgynous lesbian and wearing the same jeans and sweaters year after year. I always marvel at Sex and the City, thinking about how many women actually buy things like clothes and shoes.