Cupcakes and High Heels: It's a Juggling Act

Cupcakes and High Heels: On Being a Woman

“Cup Cakes and High Heels: It's a Juggling Act (Thanks a lot Frances Benjamin Johnston)” by Jennifer Cartolano-Moore is part of a series of works that deal with stereotypes and labels that are traditionally and historically exclusive to women. As gender roles fluctuate according to time, culture and economy, Cartolano-Moore – in a tongue-and-cheek style – attempts to challenge the viewer’s idea of the role of women in the 21st century.

By drawing on historical photographic references such as Frances Benjamin Johnston’s 1896 Self Portrait, Cartolano-Moore attempts to debunk and poke fun at the roles that women have traditionally held as well as those roles that they currently hold. As Johnston’s images challenged the roles of women in the Victorian era, Cartolano-Moore’s images declare the difficulty that women of the 21st century face. The role of wife, mother and woman present many challenges in modern society; lines of distinction are ever changing and often grayish and blurred.

Women have been told that they are nurturers, caregivers, cooks, boo-boo kissers, lunch-packers, home makers, ageless sex goddesses and bread winners. Woman’s roles aren’t as clear as they once were which has left many with the expectation that they can have it all. Cartolano-Moore’s images declare that you CAN have it all, and you can look good doing it.