At first glimpse this ad just made me think " Yes that is something I could see Dennis Rodman doing", putting on makeup with his, now, ex-wife Carmen Electra. But upon a little further inspection and a few insightful readings, the symbolism in this ad can be and is both thought provoking and bewildering in the way(s) that the photographer challenges our normal perceptions of what is "male," and what is "female." .
Dennis Rodman is more then well known for his outlandish acts of aggression and newsworthy episodes of transgender behavior. Usually the characteristics of what makes one male or female are mirror images of each other. For example males are aggressive and dominant, and females are, typically, passive and submissive. To depict a male and a female, especially these two, in an ad where you see them from a mirrored viewpoint would indicate that Candie's marketing executives subconsciously believe this to be true. Based upon the stances these two take, one would assume again that the male is dominant over the female; he stands more upright and appears above her in the mirror. However, Holly Devor, author of the essay "Gender Role Behaviors and Attitudes," states that "Body postures and demeanors which communicate subordinate status and vulnerability to trepass through a message of "no threat" make people appear to be feminine. People appear feminine when they keep their arms closer to their bodies, their legs closer together, and their heads and torsos less vertical then do masculine-looking individuals. People also look feminine when they point their toes inward and use their hands in small or childlike gestures." Rodman keeps his hands and arms much closer to his body then Electra does. .
She, also, tends to over emphasis the fact that she is applying lipstick, by turning her arms and elbows outward, taking up more space. This, Devor says, is more a masculine stance, and while her torso is less vertical then his, her head is more erect than his.
