Cindy Sherman

Sources:

Cutler, Jody B. "Makeup and Art." Afterimage 40.1 (2012): 31-32. Print.

In “Makeup and Art,” the author makes a connection between Sherman’s work and her motivation to create tension in her photographs by her use of makeup to deflect rather than entice the male gaze. The driving force of her work is the depiction of the self and other. Sherman is more often than not physically present in her images, yet her self has been heavily manipulated. Her work provokes yet resists typecasting by viewers because of Sherman’s ability to create such emotionally charged images.

Sherman, Cindy. Cindy Sherman: The Complete Untitled Film Stills. New York: Museum of Modern Art, 2003. Print.

In the opening article, Sherman cites her own influences as television she viewed growing up and film studies she had completed during her time in college in Buffalo, NY. Her interest in the conceptual gave way to her use of herself as characters in her work. This additionally allowed her complete control of her narratives. Her images are untitled because of her desire to leave them purposefully ambiguous. She states her attraction to portraying characters that “would have been killed off” in films of that era from which she drew inspiration. Additionally, these women often are depicted with expressions showing some sort of struggle. Her images were often produced with makeshift lighting equipment and her images deliberately muddled in the darkroom to give the photographs a cheaper quality. The images from the Untitled Film Stills came about by her desire to portray herself as other characters and explore the depiction of female roles onscreen.