Strange Self-Portraits Challenge and Reinterpret the Feminine Domestic Role

For Good Behavior, Finnish photographer Iiu Susiraja constructs deadpan self-portraits in which she challenges and reinterprets the feminine domestic role. Using only the most banal of household objects, she elegantly deconstructs contemporary notions of sexuality and womanhood, courageously exposing the vanities of society at large.

Susiraja presents a modern take on feminist Betty Friedan’s concept of “The Feminine Mystique,” quietly undermining the assumption that a woman can be fulfilled solely by a life within the home. Using the objects associated with a “good” or “well behaved” woman, Susiraja defies convention, making a spectacle of her discontentment. High heels are transformed into shackles that bind her, a rolling pin a makeshift phallus that becomes an unexpected assertion of her power as a female.

Susiraja’s photographs depict a woman that is at once furious and restrained, defiant yet outwardly blameless. Despite their simple construction and clear sense of humor, they betray a potent violation of the status quo, taking a bold approach that is as liberating as it is unnerving.

All images © Iiu Susiraja

via Refinery 29

Discover More