The Role of Advertising in Creating the Image of Women and Men: a Mirror or a Conveyor? Public lecture by Iryna Alkhouka

On October 30, 2014, “Ў” gallery will host a public lecture "The Role of Advertising in Creating the Image of Women and Men: a Mirror or a Conveyor?" by a Belarusian expert Iryna Alkhouka. The lecture will be dedicated to the role of advertising in gender stereotyping, gender relations and socialization, approaches to regulating gender offensive advertising, sexism in advertising and ways of reacting to it.
At the public lecture Iryna Alkhouka will talk about the modern role of advertising in creating the image of men and women.

What does modern advertising reflect? Is it a mirror of society or does it impose its own social roles? What kind of "male" and "female" imagery does advertising create today? Do advertisements reflect our nature? How does advertising normalize images of men and women? Are people more free in the real life or in the world pictured by advertisements? What are the ad makers seeking?

What are the roots of gender problems and why do such processes happen? In what way is advertising sexist and what is the role of eroticism in advertising?

Participants of the event will have a chance to study modern approaches to gender issues in mass culture, and join the debate of modern ethics in advertising.

Iryna Aleksandrovna Alkhouka is a sociologist, expert on women's rights, promoting gender equality, preventing domestic violence, combating human trafficking and non-profit organization development.
Head of International public association "Gender Perspectives" since 2010.  Member of the National Council on Gender Policy at the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Belarus.
 
Member of the Board of the International Anti-Trafficking Association "La Strada" (the Netherlands) since 2011. From 1996 to 2009 a leader of the public association "Belarusian Association of Young Christian Women".
Iryna Alkhouka works in the field of combating domestic violence and promoting gender equality.  Author of more than twenty articles on domestic violence, gender equality, human trafficking. Currently serves as a national expert at United Nations Population Fund in Belarus developing a training course for professionals of domestic violence prevention.