Sunday 24 November 2013

Trophy Scaves: Controversial Art

"I wear white women for status and power."
-Nate Hill, founder of Trophy Scarves

I first came across this image on Twitter and thought "WTF?!" There was no context, no information on its origin: just this photograph of a man with a white women draped over his shoulders like a scarf.


The image was posted by Nate Hill on Instagram three weeks ago: no explanation, no caption, just the hash tag 'trophy scarves' leaving the viewer completely open to interpret the images as they see fit. I drew the conclusion that the aim was to highlight not only the objectification of women, but to also challenge certain depictions of race which deem white women as status symbols.

See below for what Nate had to say regarding the piece in an interview with Vice Magazine:


What’s "Trophy Scarves" about? 
Well, there are people who see certain races as status symbols, and someone had to comment on that.
Is this a similar tone to what you were doing with "White Power Milk"?
Yeah. With "White Power Milk," I just wanted to talk about how people see white women as a status symbol. With "Trophy Scarves," I wanted to find another way to come at that. I guess it’s the same kind of satirical, tongue-in-cheek approach that I like to take with things. I like to talk about something serious but do it in a lighter, kind of a goofy way. 

I feel that he effectively managed to portray his ideas, as well as present them in a manner which would create discussion. What are your thoughts on this?  
Read the full interview here.
Images via @trophyscarves Instagram

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