Anthropological conventions and sexual desires

Anthropological conventions and sexual desires

By Julianne de Sousa

In this black and white picture we see two young women, one sitting and looking away from the camera and the other standing next to her and looking straight at the photographer. Apart from some jewelry, they are both completely unclothed. About a third of the background consists of grassy earth, and the remaining two-thirds depict a building composed of thatched straw. The only prop, right in the center of the photograph, is the wooden folding chair occupied by one of the two women.  

In 1910, this photo was published by Max Weiß in his book: Die Völkerstämme im Norden Deutsch-Ostafrikas (The Native Races of German East Africa). From 1907 to 1908 he was part of the Duke of Mecklenburg´s expedition to Eastern and Central Africa. Many of his photos documenting the expedition are of unclothed women. These pretend to scientific status through Weiß’s framing of his subjects according to anthropological convention. His portraits document the women frontally, from behind, and in profile; at half-length and full-length. The chosen poses reflect the colonial goal of measuring, defining and categorizing their bodies.  

But in fact, although this photo forms part of a series entitled ‘Körperbau und Gestalt’ (‘Physique and Stature’), its main impulse is not anthropological. The standing woman is resting her weight on her right leg, while the left is bent inward, possibly in an attempt to cover her vulva. Her upper body is slightly turned at the waist, and her right arm is concealed in the gap between both bodies. The other (sitting) woman’s upper thighs are pressed together, but there is a gap between her lower legs. Her arms are stiffly pressed to her sides. Her head is sharply angled to one side. Both poses are highly unnatural postures, giving the impression that they were staged by the photographer and uncomfortable for those photographed.

As discussed in a previous post, historically, anthropological photos of unclothed women did not simply serve pseudoscientific purposes, but functioned (primarily) to fulfill the sexual desires of the European spectator. What is unique about this image in particular is that, here, those sexual intentions are barely concealed.