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October 31, 2005
Photograph: Cheryl Haworth
The postcard I received is “Cheryl Haworth” and was taken in New York City by Annie Lebiovitz.
Studium (Denotation)
My postcard shows a very tall, full-figured, muscular woman against a stark dark gray background. Her skin is very pale, almost white, and her hair is pulled back tightly, away from her face. Her lips are pursed firmly and her eyebrows are furrowed. She is wearing a black singlet (similar to a leotard). Around each wrist she has tied a thick white strip of fabric. She has on plain white socks and simple black and white patterned sneakers. She is leaning down, lifting a very long barbell with a large red weight on one side. (We cannot see the other side of the barbell.) The muscles in her arms and legs are tensed and incredibly defined.
Punctum (Connotation)
It seems as if this woman is a competitive weight-lifter because her body appears suited to this sport. She certainly has large muscles and a full-figure, but it is difficult to say that she is fat. Instead, she appears to fit the profile I have in my mind (from prior knowledge) of weight-lifters. From her appearance it is also clear that she is straining very hard to lift this large barbell. First, simply by the fact that the barbell is so large, it makes us suspect that it may be difficult for her to lift it. Also, her lips are pursed and her eyebrows are furrowed, signifying that she is concentrating and straining to lift this weight. Third, her muscles are defined, suggesting that they are working hard. Her appearance also gives off a no-nonsense attitude, as if she is putting all of her energy into her work. Her hair is pulled back simply and she only wears the necessary apparel. For example, she wears simple socks and sneakers, so clearly she is not interested in showing off.
Posted by lciscotis at October 31, 2005 09:33 PM
Comments
What is also interesting about this photograph is that, from the way you described it, it seems like most of the image in in black, white, gray, and other neutral colors, except for that weight on the barbell. I would imagine that the red really stands out compared to the rest of the image. Leibovitz probably wanted to create a certain effect by using the color red on the weight.
Posted by: Brenna S. at November 1, 2005 10:55 AM