Cindy Sherman is an American photographer born in 1954 and a major figure in contemporary art. Famous for her staged self-portraits in which she disguises herself and embodies a wide range of characters, she questions female stereotypes and the construction of identity through images.
Cindy Sherman(1954 — ?)
Cindy Sherman
États-Unis
5 min read
Frequently asked questions
Famous Quotes
« I feel I'm anonymous in my work. When I look at the pictures, I never see myself; they aren't self-portraits. Sometimes I disappear.»
Key Facts
- Born on January 19, 1954, in Glen Ridge, New Jersey (United States)
- Created the Untitled Film Stills series (1977-1980), 69 black-and-white photographs that made her famous
- Received the MacArthur Fellowship (known as the “genius grant”) in 1995
- Major retrospective at the MoMA in New York in 2012
- Her works rank among the most expensive photographs in the contemporary art market
Works & Achievements
A series of 69 black-and-white photographs in which she stages herself as the heroine of imaginary films. The founding work of her worldwide reputation.
Photographs in the double-page spread format of magazines, playing with expectations surrounding the image of women.
A dark and unsettling series inspired by fairy tales and the imagery of horror.
Parodies of portraits from Old European painting, created with costumes and prosthetics.
A photograph of a young woman lying down, which became one of the most expensive photographs ever sold at auction.
A horror feature film she directs, extending her work on staging and mise-en-scène.
A series of clown portraits with garish colors and digital backgrounds, at once funny and deeply unsettling.
Portraits of elderly high-society women, questioning aging and social appearances.
Anecdotes
In 1977, at just 23 years old, Cindy Sherman began her most famous series, the *Untitled Film Stills*. In them, she photographs herself disguised as heroines of 1950s and 1960s B-movies. None of these photos corresponds to a real film: everything is invented to look like movie images.
Cindy Sherman almost always works alone to create her pieces: she is at once the model, the makeup artist, the costume designer, the lighting technician, and the photographer. She often triggers the camera herself with a remote control, turning her studio into a miniature film set.
In 2011, one of her photographs, *Untitled #96*, sold for nearly 3.9 million dollars, becoming for a time the most expensive photograph ever sold at auction. This showed just how highly her work was valued on the art market.
To keep things ambiguous, Sherman almost never gives her works a title: she simply calls them *Untitled* followed by a number. She wants viewers to look at the image without being guided by words.
In certain series, such as her clown portraits or her *society portraits*, she uses prosthetics, fake noses, digital backgrounds, and exaggerated makeup to become unrecognizable — to the point that you forget it is always the same woman in every photo.
Primary Sources
I'm not telling anyone's particular story. Instead, I try to create an image that triggers in the viewer the memory of a film they think they've seen.
I'm my own makeup artist, my own model, my own stylist. It's simpler that way: I don't have to explain to anyone what I'm trying to achieve.
Sherman's work questions the way images, especially those of the media and cinema, shape our perception of female identity.
Key Places
Suburban American town where Cindy Sherman was born in 1954 and spent part of her childhood.
Institution where she studied art in the 1970s and turned to photography.
City where she settled in the late 1970s and built the core of her artistic career.
Museum that acquired the complete set of the “Untitled Film Stills” and devoted a major retrospective to her in 2012.
British museum that presented a retrospective of her work in 2019.
Typical Objects
The central tool of her work, allowing her to photograph herself by triggering the shutter from a distance. She is thus the sole master of every shot.
She amasses dozens of wigs to radically transform her appearance from one photo to the next. They serve to create completely different characters.
Makeup, fake noses, false teeth and prosthetics allow her to age, distort or caricature her face. Makeup becomes a genuine tool for sculpting the portrait.
An enormous wardrobe of varied clothing, from the chic suit to the clown outfit. Each costume establishes a character and a period.
Painted canvases, colored backgrounds or digitally projected images serve as the setting for her scenes. They turn her studio into an improvised film set.
From the 2000s onward, she uses software to alter the sets and appearance in her photographs. Digital technology broadens her possibilities for transformation.
School Curriculum
Vocabulary & Tags
Key Vocabulary
Daily Life
Morning
Cindy Sherman's work is built around long days in her New York studio. In the morning, she prepares her sessions: choosing costumes and wigs, and setting up the lighting.
Afternoon
The afternoon is often devoted to transformation: meticulous makeup, fitting prosthetics, and trying out poses in front of the lens. She can spend hours becoming another character.
Evening
In the evening, she reviews her shots, selects the best images, and considers retouching. It is also a moment of critical reflection on the character created during the day.
Food
Like many contemporary artists living in the city, her diet is that of an ordinary New Yorker, with no particular ritual tied to her art. Meals are slotted in between the long working sessions.
Clothing
Outside the studio, she dresses in a discreet, urban style. But her professional wardrobe is enormous: hundreds of costumes and accessories meant for her characters.
Housing
She lives and works in New York, in spaces that blend home and studio. Her studio is filled with wigs, makeup, backdrops, and photographic equipment.
Historical Timeline
Period Vocabulary
Liens externes & ressources
Références
Œuvres
Centerfolds (Untitled #92, etc.)
1981
Fairy Tales
1985
Untitled #96
1981
Office Killer
1997
Clowns
2003-2004
