From Purcell’s “Dido and Aeneas” to the women of Tarantino
From Don Giovanni to “The feminine man” in the photography of Nir Arielis

Who am I? Who do I want to be?

At the University of Music and Performing Arts in Graz, I am currently running a course on “Identity-Undoing Gender” with students coming from such diverse subjects as musicology or instrumental studies in classical music, but also sociology, engineering, medicine and visual arts.

In the course we examine our personal identities, our gender affiliation and the possibility to explore new roles and perspectives with regard to both.

In the upcoming weeks I will present some of the works the students have realized starting with a video by Theresa Höllerer. The question that triggered her film was

What is my gender identity in my own perception?

Theresa visualizes female gender stereotypes. You will hear a few German words in the video, which translate as follows: “Thank you, thank you”, “No, that’s fine, really”, “I don’t know”, “Oh, I will fail!”.

Theresa’s girl is insecure, innocent and delicate and wants to please and be guided. She longs for protection.

Featured image: ©Theresa Höllerer, Theresa’s blog on tumblr: http://stresor.tumblr.com/