Contexts: Producing the J.CREW Catalog

WOMEN IN CONTEXT

ECSTASY
Woman in hotel room

Associate women with transient sexuality. Use spaces that are not permanent. Convey the message that women's work is temporary and involves sexual pleasure.
Woman in hotel room

*Hotel rooms and couches are good ways to establish these associations. These pictures show good practice.

DIGITAL
Woman sitting on chair without context

Make sure women seem digital. By having most pictures lack context (unless it is related to sexual ecstasy), woman can appear cut and pasted; they are objects that do not need to interact with context or be a part of environment. Remember, they exist in dreams. This is their real work, to be part of sexual fantasies.

*Notice that there is no studio drape or indication that she exists in a real world. She really is nowhere, like in a dream.

MEN IN CONTEXT

STUDIO PORTRAIT Snapshot picture of man

Creating a snapshot that mimics a photo is another way to generate the awareness that men are in on the pictures. Using this frame helps to emphasize the authenticity of these men.

*The picture to the right shows good practice for generating a man's awareness of his surroundings.

Man in studio sitting on stool with guitar

Man in studio sitting on stool with guitar

When men are out of context, make sure the audience knows they know — that this is a picture they are posing for. Men are always aware of their surroundings.

*Notice the studio drape at the bottom of the picture. A subtle cue like this is a good way to let an audience know he is "in on it."

TOOLS
It is also good to have men displayed with a technology. It associates men with real work and the real world. The guitar in the picture above is good practice.