Macho Femininity

Palimpsest is an artifact that is meant to proudly highlight attributes of a culture or idea, that is later altered to include a more realistic or less exclusive view. In this project, we were asked to find an object that symbolized exclusion, and reimagine it through interactive design elements to simulate real-world interactions.

As someone who has danced their entire life, pointe shoes were always glorified as the pinnacle of a female dancer’s career. Pointe shoes were designed to be ethereal, gentle, graceful, and soft, which are attributes that are historically “feminine.” I wanted to create an interaction that highlighted the amount of strength, determination, and intense labor that goes into becoming a ballerina.

I used Artivive to generate a scannable poster that would turn into an animation that showed the purpose behind each part of the shoe itself, and the training required behind pointe work.