What is a distinctly female gaze?

Does it even exist?

With the exhibit A Female Gaze, a group of female photographers explore concepts of masculinity, the male, and the feminine perspective. Some have examined their own and their subject’s vulnerability, others have conceptualised the dynamic between observer and observed and the tension therein. The exhibit also touches upon themes such as identity, desire, intimacy, gender roles, and family.

The central question centers upon the existence of a specific female gaze. Does it even exist? If so, what does it entail? What shapes and influences it, culturally, personally, and socially?

Who sees what?

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A gaze that seeks more than it steers.

A gaze that is vulnerable and that makes space for the vulnerable.

A gaze that is about reflection over projection.

A gaze that is expansive, inclusive, collaborative, and compassionate

Artists include Andrea Gamst, Erika Hebbert, Elen Sonja Klouman, Erle Kyllingmark, Margaret M de Lange, Julie Pike, Tine Poppe, Pernille Sandberg, Line Ørnes Søndergaard, Charlotte Wiig and Rebecca Zeller.

Please join the conversation and help define what it means to have a gaze, a specific viewpoint, in contemporary culture. Is there one? Is it culturally specific? Is it fluid? Is it identity-determined?

With the exhibit A Female Gaze, a group of female photographers explore concepts of masculinity, the man, and the feminine perspective. Some have examined their own and their subject’s vulnerability, others have conceptualised the dynamic between observer and observed and the tension therein. The exhibit also touches upon themes such as identity, desire, intimacy, gender roles, and family. The central question centers upon the existence of a specific female gaze. Does it even exist? If so, what does it entail? What shapes and influences it, culturally, personally, and socially?

The group is made up of both established and newer names and represents a broad spectrum of visual expressions and approaches. In addition to photography, the exhibit includes installations and interactive pieces.

After Oslo Negativ, the exhibit travels to the Nordic Light Festival in Kristiansund from the 27th to the 31st of October, and then back to Oslo at Shoot Gallery in November. The initiator and project leader is the Oslo-based photographer, Charlotte Wiig.