Jaz cover issue low res - Flipbook - Page 18
Bimbofication
ity are stuck in a heteronormative matrix so on the whole men are the less
critical, more consuming fans of these bimbofied women. Here is the second conundrum. In interviews many of these women begin by stating they
are embracing being stupid, yet they also add, especially Foran and Chaplecka, that they are politically conscious, active in the LGBTQIA+ community (most of the bimbofied are bisexual or queer) and stand behind movements such as pro-choice, pro-sex work, #blacklives matter (although thus
far bimbofication seems a very white movement, even though many caricatures are inspired by Manga aesthetics). Foran tells I-D magazine: ‘A new
age bimbo is thought of as someone who is politically active and values far
left views, so in that respect the popularity of the new bimbo is definitely
informed by the state of the world today’ while Chlapecka tells Lithium:
‘Being a woman is political, period. That’s why bimboism is so intertwined
with leftist politics because unfortunately, leftist politics literally means
fighting for human rights. I think being a woman and feminine-presenting
and part of the LGBT community is a political stance in itself. As someone who’s white, cis, and has a platform, it’s really important for me to be
using my voice to talk about marginalized groups who are being greatly
affected by the patriarchy and the straight cis white men who believe they
run everything. Anybody with people listening to them needs to be talking
about these things. Bimboism means liberating
yourself and being an
advocate for people.’ So
how does one pronounce
being volitionally stupid
and be both motivated by
and active in political and
ideological
challenges
to the stereotypical gender norms which birthed
the designation ‘bimbo’?
Contemplating the previous decade and current
status of world leaders,
it is difficult to imagine
power equals intellect
and it definitely does not
align with the capacity
for thought or self ref lection. How many times in
the last decade have we
looked at political leaders (almost all men) and thought ‘if only he knew
what a fucking idiot he was’?
imbofication is painfully self aware to the point of being a refined
curation of stupid, but is it stupid to claim one is stupid? Is learning
how to be stupid indicative of antagonism to education, crafting
subjectivity, or its very opposite? Is this just a heightened version of
what women trained in being women have always been forced to
do? Geniuses from Plato to Michaelangelo and De Beauvoir have emphasised
that they know nothing, that they are yet to learn and that knowledge is the
perpetual absence of knowing anything. Would the world look different if the
idiot world leaders reflected upon this? If women have been rendered devoid
of power because they should seek objectification, whether it be as a bimbo
or a ‘stylish’ ‘classy’ object (ridiculously arbitrary descriptions to sell us ever
more abstract reasons for why we are inadequate) then is there power to be
found in the dupe that they are stupid and reducible only to pink hair, pink
nails, fantasy make-up and a baby voice? True to their postmodern incarnation of child-woman-idiot-savant, the bimbofied are arguably a new generation of ditzy woman belonging to the genealogy of Mae West and Marilyn
Monroe, or even that most wholesome and unbearably talented icon Dolly
Parton. Underestimation is a key to power. And for these bimbofied women to
the greatest signifier of power – money. While Fairbairn, who runs The Bimbo
Manifesto podcast, has stated that bimbofication is both satirical and really
real, for Gen Z the reality of what money can access in a world with diminished free education, zero hours contracts and scarce post-degree jobs is undeniable, especially at that liminal age the bimbofied occupy, usually between
18-23. The aspect of the ‘really real’ is also present in the frankness with which
many of the bimbofied speak of body issues, including self harm, social anxiety and body dysmorphia. Many of Delphine’s videos wittily insert references
to self harm and to a wish to die that challenges much existential philosophy
and fetishistic representations of the Ibsen-esque broken doll. Her videos also
Women should be sexy
but not too much,
not too much boob,
not too much make-up,
not too loud,
not too crazy,
not too hysterical
photography/photoshop: Michael Casman
B
16/Salvation
Belle Delphine, the personification of Bimbo aristocracy;
sexy, funny, clever and very, very successful
call out the viewer to her Daddy issues (a common theme in much fandom in
general) asking while she may be the baby, why the hell would someone want
to be the Daddy to such emotional vulnerability and a kind of self-reclaimed
crazy. While the traditional bimbo was an object produced for the impossible
fantasies of men, bimbofication seems as much if not more about each individual’s fulfilment of a fantasy of identity for themselves that speaks directly
to the more fluid understanding of, not only sex, gender, sexuality, but also self
as a whole, including frankness about mental health and what makes a good
normal woman versus an extra one. The Manga-esque colouration of many of
the bimbos tips away from stereotypes of porn into absolute fantasy character, verging on Cosplay.
he bimbofied are unapologetically ‘too much’ with hair, make-up and
clothing that, if taken seriously by traditional sex industries, Lad’s
mags or even heteronormative dating, could be met with that eye-rolling inducing response of ‘not too much’ – women should be sexy but
not too much, not too much boob, not too much make-up, not too loud,
not too crazy, not too hysterical. And always in reference to relationships with
male figures. The bimbofication videos are women alone or in bizarre scenarios
with, in the case of Delphine, skeletons, Hello Kitty dolls, performing utterly
bizarre and sometimes lyrically fascinating performances.
In this sense perhaps the bimbofied shares more with other feminist
movements such as the ‘grotesque’ feminist artists who celebrate vomiting, shitting, unwashed hairy women, or even those of us who gave up
showering, shaving and bras during and after lockdown because why the
fuck should we? The very best bimbofication videos absolutely transgress
the limits of the gaze and objectification to absurdist performance art, Del-
T