Let's Take Back Our Space: Marianne Wex's Study of the Gendered Body Language

Who gets to take up space? Marianne Wex’s documentation featured in MoMA’s exhibition Taking Back Our Space: Photographic Perspectives, questions the body language and gestures that we often overlook.

Starting her journey in 1972, Wex photographed people in Hamburg and gathered images from advertisements, newspapers, magazines, television, film, and art catalogues. She organized them into photographic panels under categories including “standing arms,” “sitting legs,” and “possessive holds.” These arrangements transform familiar poses into a visual argument about gender and power.

The comparison between the postures of different gestures in such a way showed how vastly different the male and female were. The masculine expansiveness versus the confinement of the feminine language was obvious in the way Wex's collection was organized. Spread legs, extended arms, and relaxed stances suggest permission to occupy space, while tightly positioned limbs suggest expectations of restraint. Wex presents these patterns as products of social conditioning, challenging the assumption that gendered body language is simply natural.

What I find compelling is how the panels make these differences repeatedly visible in many scenarios. One person’s posture could appear as if it was just an incident but similar gestures placed together encourage us to recognize a larger social pattern. Pairing everyday photographs with media imagery also raises questions about how representations reinforce the behaviors we learn.

The work truly questions the way we think about public seating, classroom participation, and even how we position ourselves around others. How much of our bodily expression feels chosen?

Wex’s documentation brings attention to these habits and imagine occupying space with freedom, confidence, and awareness of those around us.