Painting Reflects Women’s Changing Role
The Chinese woman’s thoughtful gaze out the window mesmerized me. A Chinese artist’s work was on exhibit at a local art gallery near our Shanghai hotel, and his oil paintings were of young Chinese women—eyes half closed, lips pursed, delicate fingers doing everyday activities. Holding a tea cup, combing a younger girl’s hair, playing a card game, pointing to a bird, holding her chin in pensive thought…it was hard to decide which one I should bring home as my special souvenir from this memorable trip. After the expected negotiations with the art dealer, I selected the young woman whose thoughts I can only imagine 100 different ways.
Prior to the trip last fall, I read about the evolving marketing approaches to young Chinese men and women. According to an associate at the ad agency Leo Burnett, “Chinese women are expressing themselves in a way their mothers couldn’t; there is a rise in materialism and ego. Women in the workforce in China have grown; the average annual income in China’s urban centers soared 315 percent between 1990 and 2000, with female managers rising to 6.1 percent from 2.9 percent in 1990. Women employed in professional or technical jobs rose to 22.8 percent. Women are more fashion conscious and are demanding certain brands simply because there are more available to choose from. There used to be three brands of shampoo to choose from; now there are 300.”
Chinese women like their new independence. I had read, prior to the trip, that many women had glamour photos of themselves at their work places. Indeed, at the dental lab I toured with the Bradley EMBA class, I saw glamour shots over the workstations of several of the young women.
They didn’t look up, nor did they talk among themselves as we toured the manufacturing plant. The lighting seemed poor, and we wondered about the workers’ eyesight, even though we didn’t see anyone wearing glasses. I did notice, however, that most young women wore dresses or pant suits with high heels—even in the silk factory, where they stood on cement floors.
Two decades of economic reform and rising incomes have had an effect on Chinese men as well. Men are more insecure, and according to the Leo Burnett study, are turning to time-honored patriarchal traditions to reassert themselves. Chinese machismo is about power and “face” and lavish gifts—giving and meal hosting give men the chance to build face. “Until 10 years ago, under the socialist system, men were given a lot of positive credit for doing things like housework and being equal with their wives, but now those values are a joke,” said the report.
It was interesting to observe these gender nuances on the street, in advertising, in the workplace, and even in the home as our Chinese tour guide shared glimpses of her home life.
This pensive young Chinese woman in the painting might be dreaming of her future, with limitless opportunities, or her past, when her only choices were ingenue and caregiver, or her child’s—if she decides to have any. It’s a coming-of-age picture, I decided, one of declared independence. No language or cultural barriers exist in the soul and passion of the female psyche—only time and distance. TPW
Prior to the trip last fall, I read about the evolving marketing approaches to young Chinese men and women. According to an associate at the ad agency Leo Burnett, “Chinese women are expressing themselves in a way their mothers couldn’t; there is a rise in materialism and ego. Women in the workforce in China have grown; the average annual income in China’s urban centers soared 315 percent between 1990 and 2000, with female managers rising to 6.1 percent from 2.9 percent in 1990. Women employed in professional or technical jobs rose to 22.8 percent. Women are more fashion conscious and are demanding certain brands simply because there are more available to choose from. There used to be three brands of shampoo to choose from; now there are 300.”
Chinese women like their new independence. I had read, prior to the trip, that many women had glamour photos of themselves at their work places. Indeed, at the dental lab I toured with the Bradley EMBA class, I saw glamour shots over the workstations of several of the young women.
They didn’t look up, nor did they talk among themselves as we toured the manufacturing plant. The lighting seemed poor, and we wondered about the workers’ eyesight, even though we didn’t see anyone wearing glasses. I did notice, however, that most young women wore dresses or pant suits with high heels—even in the silk factory, where they stood on cement floors.
Two decades of economic reform and rising incomes have had an effect on Chinese men as well. Men are more insecure, and according to the Leo Burnett study, are turning to time-honored patriarchal traditions to reassert themselves. Chinese machismo is about power and “face” and lavish gifts—giving and meal hosting give men the chance to build face. “Until 10 years ago, under the socialist system, men were given a lot of positive credit for doing things like housework and being equal with their wives, but now those values are a joke,” said the report.
It was interesting to observe these gender nuances on the street, in advertising, in the workplace, and even in the home as our Chinese tour guide shared glimpses of her home life.
This pensive young Chinese woman in the painting might be dreaming of her future, with limitless opportunities, or her past, when her only choices were ingenue and caregiver, or her child’s—if she decides to have any. It’s a coming-of-age picture, I decided, one of declared independence. No language or cultural barriers exist in the soul and passion of the female psyche—only time and distance. TPW