Starting of a Research Blog.

I am Francesco Ferranti and I am postgraduate student at Bath Spa University in Curatorial Practice.

As a preliminary task of the module Research Methodologies, we were encouraged to write a brief text to express our research interest with an image and related keywords.

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Through my BA and MA in Classics, I became deeply fascinated by the concept of metamorphosis, either animal or human, as it is developed in Ovid’s Metamorphoses and by how in Latin and Greek literature gender creates a dialogue with semiotics and identity politics.

During my year as a potential Phd student in Classics at Bristol University, I developed a more narrow focus on gender fluidity in photography and performing arts, taking part in queer talks and events in different venues.

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I believe that Performing art (e.g body / identity performance) might contribute in a more powerful and transparent way than other forms of expression to the development of a fluid perception of gender identity.

Performers like drag queens / drag kings or non binary artists (e.g. Cassils, Sasha Velour, Leigh Bowery, DeLaGrace Volcano, Oreet Ashery) and moreover the latest fashion campaigns (e.g. Jeremy Scott for Moschino, Vivienne Westwood, Rei Kawakubo for Comme Des Garçons) are increasingly shaping mainstream society with the primary purpose of moving beyond the boundaries between what is (still nowadays!) perceived as feminine or masculine ( colours as a sign of binary gender expression, skirt vs jeans, wearing make-up / high heels vs wearing camo pants), challenging conventional expressions of beauty and body image that traditional media (e.g. tv, toys industry) are still promoting.

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These are the keywords that I chose to sum up my research:

#gender #genderfluidity #genderisaconstruct #breakingdownstereotypes #performance #embodiment

Pawlok, W. (n.d.) Werner Pawlok : Leigh Bowery #1863. [electronic print] Available from: http://www.pawlok.com/leigh-bowery-453.html [Accessed 23 October 2017].

This portrait of Leigh Bowery is included in a series that formed Werner Pawlok’s Leigh Bowery Magazine (2013). Through a visually striking make-up, he drives our imagination to the New Romantics culture and their influences within the club scene in Soho in the early 80’s, where we first encountered the roots of British Club Kids culture.

Reference list:

• Pawlok, W. (n.d.) Werner Pawlok : Leigh Bowery #1863. [electronic print] Available from: http://www.pawlok.com/leigh-bowery-453.html [Accessed 23 October 2017].