Packaging Yourself

Dates

2019 - Ongoing
Author

Lauren Pisano
Topics Portrait, Social Issues, Fine Art
Location Los Angeles, United States

Self-Portrait Series: Packaging Yourself.

These are images from my ongoing self-portrait series illustrating the fashion “don’ts” John T. Molloy gives women in his 1977 book, "A Woman’s Dress for Success." Under the guise of scientific research, Malloy instructs women on which outfits and accessories will "make or break" them in the professional world and beyond. By photographing myself wearing the items that he warns against, I am drawing attention to the stiflingly sexist nature of not only this book, but the conversation which surrounds a woman's appearance.

© Lauren Pisano - Image from the Packaging Yourself photography project

Doing it Wrong: Slouch Hat. “Women’s hats serve two functions: they decorate a woman and they add to her sense of presence. The hat that would work best for most businesswomen is a medium-brim fedora. One word of caution. If the fedora looks masculine, it will reduce your authority. I suggest a maroon fedora with a little feather since men don’t wear those.”

Doing it Wrong: Sweater. “Sweaters in the office spell secretary. Any woman at any level who wants to move up should not wear a sweater to work. In the office sweaters give out nothing but negative impluses. They say lower middle class and loser. If it’s cold in the office, wear a warm blazer. But for attracting men, no garment tests better than the sweater if it’s tight and made of soft luxuriant wool. A cashmere sweater on a woman with even a moderate build is one of the greatest seduction garments in existence.”

Doing it Wrong: Colored Pantyhose. “Wear only skin-colored pantyhose. Anything else at work is unthinkable. Furthuremore, anything else turns off men. All the non-skin-colored stockings tested so horribly that I don’t even think they’d make an effective mask for a bank robber.”

Doing it Wrong: Mittens. “No young lady over age ten should wear mittens.”

Doing it Wrong: Fur. “A woman wearing a coat with a large fur collar or a fur coat will find it difficult to carry on a serious conversation with a male executive. These men tend to think that women in furs are feminine frilly and flighty- but not sexy. One powerful executive in a major corporation told me that he distrusts women who wear fur coats.”

Doing it Wrong: Platform Shoes. “The towering platform shoe is the most preposterous thing manufactured for a woman since the chastity belt.”

Doing it wrong: Long Hair. "When Delilah cut Samson’s hair, he lost his power. If women cut their hair too short, they do the same thing to themselves. Women with very short hair and with very long hair can be feminine, very sexy, very appealing, an very non-authoritative. If a woman wants to be authoritative, she must have hair in the medium range."

Doing it Wrong: No Wedding Ring. “The most useful piece of jewelry any businesswoman can wear is a wedding ring.”

Doing it Wrong: Poncho. “Women who nine days out of ten look acceptable show up on a rainy day looking like refugees.”

Doing it Wrong: Ill fitting blazer. "The blazer must cover, not accentuate, the contours of the body. It should cover your bust, and your rear shouldn’t stick out too much."

Doing it Wrong: Vests. “Don’t wear a vest for business, particularly one that accentuates the contours of the body. Research indicates that when a woman wears a vest, she draws attention to her bust. With all women this is sexy and with a busty woman it is very sexy. “

Doing it Wrong: Cheap Pencils. “Under no circumstances should a businesswoman use a cheap pen or pencil in front of anyone else, even if the people she is dealing with are using cheapies themselves.”

Doing it Wrong: Glasses. “For the same reason that glasses work very well for the businesswoman, they’re a poor idea for the woman who is trying to be appealing. Glasses make her more authoritative and there is a direct reverse correlation between authority and appeal.”

Doing it Wrong: Velvet. “Velvet. A thick, soft pile material that says sexy.”

Doing it Wrong: Lipstick. “You should not use lipstick that stands out in any way. If fashion says everyone is to wear dark lipstick, wait until everyone is wearing it before you do.”

Doing it Wrong: Feminine Prints. “Businesswomen cannot get away with wearing feminine prints with flowers, birds, sail boats, and the like. Many of the abstract prints should also be avoided. Although most of those prints are perfectly acceptable to wear socially, they will make men think that a business woman wearing them to work is frilly and ineffective. The pattern that tested worst was floral. I would even advise against wearing it socially.”

Doing it Wrong: Black Blouse. “A black blouse increases your authority so much that you offend 15 percent to 20 percent of the executive population, particularly men over forty-five.”

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