Focussing on male stereotypes when working into my photographs

After reading an article publishes by The Sun regarding the Armed Forces 'going soft', I was inspired to respond to this statement.
Link to article:
https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/5307683/british-army-advert-campaign-emotional-support-solider-political-correctness/

I have responded to this article by reflecting both sides of the argument; how a 'man' should typically behave and the 'softer' side to the male representation of a soldier. I have done this by using the technique of cutting out words into photographs. I decided to cut into photographs from my Dad's service in the British Army as these photographs are personal to my family and so have relevance to me. These also instantly provide a monochrome background which is prevalent within Barbara Kruger's artwork. I wanted to portray both sides of the way a man 'should' behave and so I have completed two experiments based on each persona. For example, I cut out 'man' and 'be a man' into two photographs and 'cry' and 'emotion' into the others. I have painted red acrylic paint behind these so that the red adds a sharp injection of colour. As the colour red has opposing connotations of danger and love, this colour is suitable to use in both instances. The new British Army advert promotes how it is acceptable to express emotion, as well as belong to minority groups, like being gay. The adverts are opposing the stereotype of the traditional male and I believe that this is a big step for our country. Additionally, a wider force has contributed to opposing this stereotype, like Paloma Faith addressing this issue in her latest album.



Returning back to working into the photographs that I had taken myself, I have now looked at using my Dad's Army photographs in a different way. Adding these photographs into the background makes the general theme of military more evident to the viewer. It is also means that there is more tonal variation within the composition as the photo is black and white. I chose to photograph my friend, Evan, as he wants to join the British Armed Forces, specifically the RAF. Therefore I have cut different size squares out around his head to represent the confusion that has been made surrounding the mindset of a soldier. Although the new campaign promotes an emotional diverse male, the transition from the old traditional mindset to the new one will take a lot of time. Therefore, I chose to remove squares from the photograph in the foreground to present a pixilation between traditional and modern man. The expression on Evan's face further accentuates this transition a he looks despondent and so doesn't know how to portray himself. Furthermore, I have folded the centre of the squares over to add a stark contrast between, not only colour, but between the old soldier beneath and the new generation of Armed Forces personnel. Additionally, I took this photograph with a red gel over the lens and so there is a subtle presence of colour which means this experiment still coincides with my colour palette.