Katie Hogben: 'Beautiful Consumptive Heroine'. Costume, 2022
Beautiful Consumptive Heroine by Katie Hogben
Costume
Artist statement: I created this costume to explore the damaging trope of the Beautiful Consumptive Heroine that commonly appears in storytelling related to sick women, and sets up unrealistic and dangerous expectations of how sick women should be.
The Beautiful Consumptive Heroine character is a woman that is extremely beautiful and made more beautiful by her tragic illness, which is commonly consumption (i.e. tuberculosis), but there are examples of this trope associated with other illnesses. This costume is an exaggerated fantasy version of a traditional Victorian nightgown, with gathered sleeves and neckline, heavy elaborate lace, and a long impractical train, all in pure white to emphasise the unrealistic angelic beauty of this stereotypical character.
Fanciful nightgowns like this can be seen regularly in stage productions of operas and musicals that feature Beautiful Consumptive Heroines sweeping around the stage either in the manic pre-death euphoria or as unearthly spirits after their tragic demise, still as beautiful as ever.
See more of Katie's work at thesickgirltrope.wordpress.com and follow her @katieexplores on Instagram
Katie Hogben: 'Beautiful Consumptive Heroine'. Costume, 2022
Beautiful Consumptive Heroine by Katie Hogben
Costume
Artist statement: I created this costume to explore the damaging trope of the Beautiful Consumptive Heroine that commonly appears in storytelling related to sick women, and sets up unrealistic and dangerous expectations of how sick women should be.
The Beautiful Consumptive Heroine character is a woman that is extremely beautiful and made more beautiful by her tragic illness, which is commonly consumption (i.e. tuberculosis), but there are examples of this trope associated with other illnesses. This costume is an exaggerated fantasy version of a traditional Victorian nightgown, with gathered sleeves and neckline, heavy elaborate lace, and a long impractical train, all in pure white to emphasise the unrealistic angelic beauty of this stereotypical character.
Fanciful nightgowns like this can be seen regularly in stage productions of operas and musicals that feature Beautiful Consumptive Heroines sweeping around the stage either in the manic pre-death euphoria or as unearthly spirits after their tragic demise, still as beautiful as ever.
See more of Katie's work at thesickgirltrope.wordpress.com and follow her @katieexplores on Instagram
