CNTM: I'm in Redface, Hear me Roar!
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| via CNTM Trudy photographed by Calvin French |
I always start these posts off with a ton of preamble, and it makes the reviews rather long, so this week, I'm trying to make a conscious effort to cut down on the word count. But before I get to the reviews, I want to call attention to something that I'm sure went over most people's heads: this entire shoot was done in redface, and that is NOT OKAY. Naturally I blame the producers of the show for not thinking, even for a second, that this might be problematic, but I'm a little disappointed that none of the girls pointed it out. (Or maybe they did and it was edited out? Let's pretend that happened.)
Other people have said it more eloquently than I, (specifically as it relates to Native Americans in the US, however the lesson translates well) but the basics are this: to be Amerindian is an identity. It is not a costume. It is the very essence of who the indigenous people are. To reduce their existence to a homogeneous hodge-podge of tacky war paint and feathers is to ignore the fact that indigenous people exist among us today, and to perpetuate the belief that their customs and cultures are a thing of the past. Correct me if I'm wrong (I am more than willing to eat crow) but I doubt that anyone on the CNTM team went through the appropriate channels to verify that this was an accurate depiction of Amerindian culture.
But enough with the social justice. That was your lesson in cultural appropriation for the day. Onto the critiques:
Everybody knows I love me some Trudy, but I don't love this shot, and it's not the best this week.The thing is, Trudy doesn't look bad, and the shot actually works quite well if cropped down to just her face and upper body, but the differing elements of the picture don't form a great cohesive unit. Trudy looks as though she's been captured mid-articulation, but just before the point at which the action becomes interesting. And her male model's poor pose is distracting, and draws the eyes away from her. Trudy actually has a spectacular profile, but there is no energy in her face in this shot, which immediately detracts from its power.
Trudy should be dominating this competition, but her shots have slowly been getting worse. Mind you, they are still well above most of the other shots, but they aren't up to the standard that Trudy is capable of. I expect more from her.
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