Gaultier's design can be read as an attempt at subverting the objectification of women through fashion. By taking on a traditional signifier of women's restriction, that is, the corset, and placing large cone shaped breasts on it, it can be said that Gaultier has created an image of female empowerment (French, 2004). By making the corset visible he highlights the way in which women have been forced to conform to accepted standards of beauty, and the way in which these standards are constructed. The cones add to this reading by removing the maternal aspects of the breast and indicating the way in which they have been objectified and the unnatural form that has become the beauty standard in western culture (French, 2004). However this design could also be seen not as a parody and symbol of empowerment, but as a reinforcement of patriarchal ideals.