A fun look at what life in Sweden might be like:
The organization behind it? The Swedish Part Model, a collaboration between trade unions and employers’ organizations. As they say, “it leads to happy and creative people in the workplace, while providing opportunities for flexibility to employers.”
Check it out: http://likeaswede.se/index_eng.html
The deadline for this year’s Fulbright Applications is August 1st. Their website has information about the different types of grants available, and they have a series of webinars to provide more information, as well as some videos to share the mission of cultural exchange that the Fulbright provides:
Check out this great gif of Blanchette reprimanding the camera for the slow toes-up pan of her outfit, as she asks: “Do you do that to the guys?”
http://www.dailylife.com.au/dl-people/dl-entertainment/cate-blanchett-calls-out-sexism-at-sag-awards-red-carpet-20140121-315nc.html
Men are definitely not objectified on the red carpet in the same way that women are. If they even make it into the press, it is rarely documented “who” they are wearing. Isn’t there a happy medium?
I love it when men’s fashion makes the news…and it’s so easy for it to BE news, since male clothing is usually so….appropriate. Kudos to the Norwegian Curling Team for shaking things up a little. Their pants even have a facebook page.
I made it to Sweden! I must say, Icelandic Air is lovely to fly on, even if you’re sitting next to somebody who looks like they might head the Swedish mafia, and who may have eaten a few rugby players for lunch. When he went to sleep, he didn’t really lean back, he just sort of settled his neck down further into his rotund (though not unmuscular) torso. On the plus side, he took his shoes off to be more comfortable (and who wouldn’t want to be comfortable on an airplane!?), so I’m pretty sure I got to experience what rotting herring smells like, for all six long (and stinky) hours. To his credit, he was wearing a very nice sweater. To add insult to injury, his friend (who was both substantially smaller but also might have been a Swedish male supermodel) was sitting in the row just behind us. Some people just have all the luck.
They have poetry written all over the walls of the airport in Reykjavik where I had a stopover – so lovely! I almost bought a (faux) fur hat in one of the Icelandic clothing stores, but when I realized that the music they were playing was “Hotel California” I got a little freaked out that the universe was trying to speak to me so I went back to the gate to wait for my flight to Stockholm.
Now I kinda wish I’d bought that hat.
I saw this new advertisement for David’s Bridal on the airplane yesterday, and I thought it pretty much summed up my revulsion for the bridal industry in particular, and attitudes about how men and women are “supposed” to dress in general.
One of my goals with the Uniform of Man project is to move men and male dressing away from the ideal standard of “invisibility.” Uniforms themselves are interesting, tailoring is a dying art form, and men deserve time in the spotlight just like women deserve the right to be more than decorative objects.
Well, it’s January, so of course we’re talking about fall fashion, even though we still have to actually live through winter, spring AND summer before we get there. Because that’s just how bizarre the fashion system is. This New York Times article talks about what was seen on the runways in Milan this week – and I thought it was interesting how much attention the author paid to the quality fabrics, noting that the fashion industry doesn’t seem to believe that women are interested in investing in that sort of thing.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/16/fashion/milan-mens-fashion-week-fall-2014.html?src=dayp&_r=0
Apparently, it was so cold in Norway last week that fish froze. In the ocean. That is insane. I’ll be in Stockholm, but Norway suddenly sounds very close.
One week until I leave for Stockholm! Luckily, the news says I will be terribly popular, since apparently Stockholm has a crush on Brooklyn:
BBC News: Why does Stockholm love Brooklyn?
New Swedish Mission: find the Breakfast Burritos.
I just saw this ad for the 2014 World Cup:
It’s a great commercial, super inspiring. Except for one thing: all the athletes are men, and the only women are nearly naked cheerleader/showgirls in feathered headdresses. (Ok, there are two little girls in soccer outfits posed on the field for a photo op, but I had to watch the video twice to find them.) When these are the stories we see, this is what we learn to believe: women are not here to make goals, we’re here to cheer on our men. We’re here to look decorative and stand out for our absence of clothing. I know, I know, its just an ESPN commercial – but a lifetime of not seeing yourself or your possible future as a person who can make a difference is a heavy burden. This needs to change. I’m not a professional athlete, or a politician, so I’ll never be a role model in that way. I look to history to uncover the archaic origins of our gendered approach to dressing and decorating the body. Men in uniforms suggest power, strength, and the possibility of success (in business, military, or athletic disciplines.) We need to see more women in uniform.
