2. Miss Congeniality

Plus September Updates from my Studio

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A Classic Then and a Classic Now

Before we begin, if you haven’t seen Miss Congeniality yet you need to start there. I’ll save you a summary of the movie, but you need to stop now and go watch it.

I was 4 when the Miss Congeniality came out. Luckily, I had parents who treated me like an adult at an early age (or more like an adult than most parents would have). They let me watch female driven movies like Pretty Woman and Bridget Jones Diary. And while neither of those are great examples for such a young mind, the one movie that came close to providing a role model and stuck with me the most was Miss Congeniality. 

On the surface it’s easy to categorize Gracie Hart, Sandra Bullock, as a tom boy overcoming her masculine traits and falling in love. That would be overlooking the magic that is this movie. The main character becomes relatable by embodying all major female stereotypes. She walks through female character tropes, stringing them together to form a whole. The film comments on beauty standards and forced eating habits. It does so with a soft hand, highlighting the joy of non-conformity. The women don’t talk about men, instead they gossip about work and support each other. In fact there is only one conversation between female characters about men in which the idea of a relationship is shot down citing the man in question’s smaller than desired equipment and lack of knowledge in how to use it.

We’ve all heard the term ‘post feminism’, for a while I’ve been searching for a way to destigmatize the idea. We do not live in a society with no need for feminism, but there’s so much more to the term that needs exploration. I stumbled on an article calling for ‘post’ to refer to ‘post modern’. Post modernism meaning in opposition to institutional definitions, in this case both of the patriarchy and early feminism. We see Gracie Hart begin the movie as a staunch feminist, asking, “why try to be Miss America when you can join the navy?” Perpetuating the idea that embracing the feminine strips you of your power, dignity, and ability to fight. We saw this in the sixties and seventies, a time when women could only occupy the ultra feminine. What Miss Congeniality opens us up to is the idea that one can embody the masculine and feminine and still be a feminist. What post-feminism allows us to do is recognize that the performance of femininity is not limited to subverting assumptions of womanhood. It stands as an evolved form of traditional feminism. We’re shown multidimensional, strong characters vying to be Miss America. We even see a proud lesbian make it into the top 5 before screaming, “I love you” to her girlfriend who’s in the audience.

Every character in the film is fully formed. Not only does Miss Congeniality pass the Bechdel Test with flying colors, it passes every form of the test. Since the Bechdel gained popularity it’s been rewritten to perceive films through racial, sexual, and gendered lenses. The tests question the racial diversity of casts, whether diversity is tokenized, and if roles have been stereotypically gendered. Aside from Gracie Hart, played by Sandra Bullock, we see a group of women including Black, Asian Island Pacificer, and Afro-Latina actors staring in supporting roles. Since this film was made in 2000, there was pressure from the studio or society to diversify casts. On top of that, their ethnicity didn’t drive the plot, meaning they weren’t type cast nor were their roles written to satisfy any stereotype. However, their characters were necessary to the plot. In the film, this quality aided to create a healthy relationship between contestants in which we see women supporting women. Even the three gay characters weren’t gay to satisfy the plot, they were people who happened to be gay. Just as women in the film happened to be whoever they were.

Last but not least, Miss Congeniality have us the male Bond-girl. The only character with fewer than three dimensions was Eric Matthews, played by Benjamin Bratt. He’s attractive, suave, hunky, displays minimal character development. He is our throw away bro. Someone to swoon over but not invest in. Thus passing the final form of the Bechdel Test, proving that the characters were not stereotyped by gender.

On top of all of this incredibly progressive writing and casting, the film contains one classic moment after another. All of Sandra Bullock’s falls, donuts stuffed into her dress, tackling a guy while wearing a Bavarian maid’s outfit, even the April 25th quote are iconic. The makeover with it’s brutal bikini wax, sandwiches ripped away, Bullock being treated like a piece of furniture getting stained and sealed, all orchestrated by Michael Caine: classic. She didn’t just get a haircut and suddenly become noticeable, she was plucked and bleached to fit the male ideal. Her fumbles and honesty show a woman with many sides, and created a genre that paved the way for comedies likes Bridesmaids. Sandra Bullock learned how to glide so that Maya Rudolph could shit in the street.

Long story long: Miss Congeniality holds up.

September Updates

I’m sending this email to you after arriving in Lisbon and settling into my new temporary home. Beginning today, though October, I’ll be in residence at Duplex Artist Run Alliance. While here I will investigate the relationship between street photography and oil painting, in an attempt to use painting as a way to conduct an ethnographic study of a new place. The body of work produced through this process will be a departure from my current pop paintings, stepping further into a research based practice.

For those of you living in Lisbon, my program will hold open studios the evening of October 8th.  If you’d like to follow along on my time in Portugal, you can do so by following me on Instagram. I’ll be posting works in progress, process videos, and longer, conceptual glimpses into my work. 

My travel newsletter, for paid subscribers, will make it’s debut in two weeks. Originally I was going to write about my trip to Antarctica, but the few days I’ve spent in Lisbon have already given me so much to share. You may see two travel newsletters come out this month! If you haven’t already subscribed, there is plenty of time left! Click the link below to sign up.

August in Review

Last month I completed 4 commissioned paintings, participated in one outdoor market, and created an EP cover. The process videos from the EP cover will be a part of the EP Single’s music video (date available TBD). I finished three paintings, sold two, one of them to a collector another to a new customer. I also saw an increase in sales of my products at locations in North Carolina.

I am available for all remote commissions and brand collaborations. I’m particularly interested in collaborations with musicians and music venues, if you have any leads on projects or contacts please feel free to share them with me or share my contact information.