Positions Through Iterating
Annotated Bibliography
Ahmed, S. (2017). Living a Feminist Life. Durham: Duke University Press.
Sara Ahmed’s exploration of complaint, institutional power, and everyday resistance gave me a critical lens through which to examine how masculinity is embedded in the structure of objects. Her discussion of how institutions work not just through rules but through silence and affect directly influenced how I began to read male-coded as complicit in reinforcing power. These objects don’t merely accessorize masculinity; they carry its weight and enforce its norms. By morphing, disrupting, or softening these items, I attempt to “complain” through design, making visible the gendered scripts that often go unnoticed. Her emphasis on lived experience resonates deeply with my project’s use of everyday objects to critique the cultural codes of masculinity.
Halberstam, J. (2011). The Queer Art of Failure. Durham: Duke University Press.
Halberstam’s theory of failure as a form of resistance gave me both permission and direction in my iterative work. His rejection of mastery and control — qualities often tied to traditional masculinity — helped me reframe “mistakes” in my process not as weaknesses, but as moments of subversion. By distorting, stretching, or collapsing objects like the belt, I began to see these failures as visual cues of a masculinity that is fraying, bending under pressure, or refusing to perform correctly. His writing made me realise that queering masculine objects doesn’t always require adding new meaning; sometimes it’s enough to interrupt their supposed function.
Plester, B. (2009). ‘”Take it like a man!”: Performing hegemonic masculinity through organizational humour.’ The Comic Organization, 6(4), pp. 476–493.
By analysing jokes, banter, and everyday interactions, the article reveals how humour becomes a mechanism for maintaining male dominance and policing gender norms. This reading provides concrete examples of how masculinity is practiced socially through informal practices, which is something I aim to challenge through my iterations. This subtle enforcement of gendered behaviour inspired me to look at objects that function similarly (Plester, 2009).
Rosler, M. (1975). Semiotics of the Kitchen. [Film].
Rosler’s video piece was central to my thinking about how everyday objects — especially when catalogued and performed — can become agents of critique. I borrowed this strategy when iterating my own objects. Rosler’s work made me realise that repetition doesn’t confirm meaning — it can also dismantle it, for instance, the more I morphed and manipulated the belt, the more absurd and unstable its original symbolism became.
BBC Radio 4. (2023). Masculinity: from Durkheim to Andrew Tate. 22 Jan. Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001h3zr
This podcast provided a historical and contemporary overview of how masculinity has been constructed, idealised, and enforced — from early sociological theories to modern influencers like Andrew Tate. The discussion sharpened my awareness of which traits continue to be celebrated under the umbrella of masculinity: control, dominance, emotional repression. It made me consider how these values are not only spoken but embodied — particularly through objects associated with “manhood.”
Bennett, H. (2025). Sonder: Adam Lin’s Affectionate Depiction of Masculinity in Domestic Spaces. [online] Itsnicethat.com. Available at: https://www.itsnicethat.com/articles/adam-lin-sonder-photography-project-220425
Adam Lin’s photographic project introduced a different view of masculinity — one rooted in softness, domesticity, and quiet affection. This is relevant to my exploration of masculinity as a layered identity — one that includes softness and intimacy as much as dominance or toughness. Lin’s photographic framing of masculinity in quiet, everyday objects and gestures informs how I consider material and symbolic representation in my own work.
A short statement (100–200 words) that articulates your line of enquiry. What questions are you exploring in this project, and how are you exploring them? Be as focused and specific as possible.
This project critically investigates how masculinity is constructed and performed through the material objects men associate with it. I ask: How do every day “manly” objects reinforce, challenge, or complicate dominant masculine norms? To explore this, I invited men to privately share images of objects they personally identify as masculine, aiming to reveal instinctive and diverse associations beyond surface stereotypes.
Starting from a digital morphing of a rigid belt—an emblem of traditional masculinity—I shifted focus to the subjective meanings men assign to objects. By curating and printing these items onto garments, I question whether masculinity is fixed or performative, and how it can be re-coded through context and repetition.
Further, by having a man wear the printed shirt, I probe the boundary between identity and costume: When does masculinity become a role consciously performed rather than an inherent truth? And how does the embodiment of these symbols expose tensions between societal expectations and individual experience? Ultimately, this work challenges assumptions about masculinity’s stability and invites reflection on its fluidity and contradictions.
Leave a Reply