“It’s A Mans World I & II” (1965) is a mix of mediums including collage, paint and photography by British Pop Artist Pauline Boty.
In all of Boty’s artworks, she demonstrates a joy in self-assured femininity and female sexuality that is sensual, chaotic and gaudy, while also taking a stance against sexism, that still echoes to today’s modern world.
In the male dominated half of the two pieces, the men can be seen in what is considered to be ‘manly’ jobs, which is still relevant to modern culture today, as they are mainly male driven; such as the presidency, scientists and joining the air force. This piece uses a mixture of paint, collage and photography, this could be a symbolic representation of the various jobs and professions that men could go into, that are not often populated by the female species. Boty is known for using red flowers as a portrayal of the female sex, incorporating it into a male only collage could mean that it is the beginning of women coming into the male steered professions, much like herself being the only woman in the 1960s British Pop Art. Boty depicts the Pop culture of the 6os using photographs of “The King”, Elvis Presley, while also telling the current political news of that decade, the assassination of Precedent Kennedy in November of 1963, again showing us that it is just men that can become worldly famous or politicians, which has never been more relevant then it is today.
On the female side of “It’s A Mans World II”, every woman is featured nude, something that was considered scandalous in the 6os for women to paint other women naked. In this painting all women have been posed into a sexual, suggestive form, bearing all for viewers to see. The women all give a feeling of soft porn, as if they were all copied from pornography magazines, meaning this was all for male pleasure. The background of the collaged painting display blue lakes and tall trees, unlike the male background that consists of a palace. This clearly shows a connection between women and nature due to women having menstruation and pregnancies, unlike men.
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