John Lennon and Yoko Ono

For those who may not know, this photo was once featured on the cover of TIME magazine many decades ago. For those even less in the know, pictured here is Yoko Ono and John Lennon of The Beatles' fame and legacy. But, even without any previous knowledge of who these people are, what context the photo was taken in, or what the history behind the photo is, it still manages to remain a striking image by itself. There still remains a certain subtext, or shadow of meaning, underneath the glamour which speaks even larger volumes about humanity and the nature of our experience, than any historical or socio-political interpretation could ever hope to achieve. This subtext is in many ways more important because regardless of context, there is still the steady pulse-beat that thumps in the throat of the image. This resonates with a certain part of us that is rooted and connected to an eternal humanity, existing throughout the ages. These shadows, what lives in between the lines, are what remind us that we are human; it captures a moment of innocent, sexual vulnerability and tenderness that is often concealed and bastardized by today's cultural piety. What's more, it reassures us, "expressing and embracing our sexuality is perfectly okay; we are human, after all."

For me this photo captures a shifting. It drastically affects the way I perceive the relationship between man and woman, masculine and feminine roles, love and subservience. More conventional gender roles depict woman as subservient to man, and in a way, this subservience is what defines her quality of femininity, and even reciprocally, his quality of masculinity. However, the elements in this photo show a balancing, and reversal of these roles. There's a dramatic contrast between the artifice of dark clothing and the more natural, blemished, light skin texture which adds a yin and yang element, and an interdependence between male and female. It suggests that within this balance, there exists an idyllic microcosm, a loving relationship that is in stasis with the universal macrocosm, and is in many ways, perfect.

John Lennon lies in an exposed posture that reveals something perhaps concealed within man. It is a certain vulnerability and dependence upon woman, seen by his infantile, fetal positioning that clings on to her like a newborn to his mother. He needs her to sustain life, and yet manages to give back for it in terms of love and protection. In a mythical context, this photo represents a reliance of man on the mother goddess, and life giver. Therefore, we also see a cultural shift, which manages to break away from a masculine centered culture. Yoko is the fertile provider, yet beauty and fertility is as a fragile flower, and still requires tenderness and protection in man's embrace.