Summer Project

My analysis of this image...

Twirling Clare: Lobster Dress. 2013. Twirling Clare: Lobster Dress. [ONLINE] Available at: http://twirlingclare.blogspot.co.uk/2011/06/lobster-dress.html. [Accessed 14 October 2013].

I think it is safe to say this is a staged shoot. This portrait shot shows a very controversial scenario. A beautifully made up Wallis Simpson standing alone in a wood, holding branches in both hands.

When you consider photo shoots conducted outdoors in a woodland environment, you envision a fresh and spacious scenario. However the background in this photograph comes across as quite sinister. The light falls on part of the background on the left of the image making dispersed thin shapes. The branches held by Simpson in the foreground also share the same qualities, looking almost like weapons with the grasp she has on them. The dark, eerie side of the background helps the statement Schiaparelli dress to stand out in its crisp white formation.

The dress Simpson is wearing in the photograph, I feel, is a hidden focal point. Predicting the scandal that would emerge from this shoot, the image consultants were clever to reduce the attention through the chosen background and through Simpson’s body language.

A lobster is obviously found in an ocean/sea environment, the opposite habitat to the forest/woodland background that Simpson is shot in front of. The clash of the background takes focus away from the erotically interpreted lobster that has been shrewdly positioned from the crotch area of the dress, down the leg. In 1937 when this image was taken, fashion was yet to make that more definitive transition into surrealist fashion and therefore it would have been considered quite taboo for any woman to be sporting such a sexually exploiting design on their attire.

The white of the dress suggests purity and innocence, corrupted not only by the positioning of the large lobster design but also by the sash across the middle which accentuates Simpson’s figure in a sexually provocative manner.

The shawl Simpson is wearing over her shoulders somewhat protects her modesty however it’s a sheer material that daringly still shows skin.

Simpson is photographed from a distance, her entire body is visible and she stands alone. She’s not opting for a glamour pose as such and stands quite awkwardly for a posed shoot. Simpson is seen gazing out of the shot with an expression of vulnerability and concern. She looks lost in thought and yearning for aid. She’s holding handfuls of branches, an unusual stance which contributes to the disguising of the lobster on her dress.

Simpson’s costume and hair and makeup would make more sense in a formal, social function environment and not outdoors in the woods. She wasn’t particularly loved by the general public and I feel this is a rebellion against their tarnish. She embraces her bad reputation by wearing such a risqué design on her dress so boldly.