Cindy Sherman

by Cindy Sherman, Eva Respini, Johanna Burton

Published to accompany the first major survey of Cindy Sherman's work in the United States in nearly 15 years, this publication presents a stunning range of work from the groundbreaking artist's 35-year career. Showcasing approximately 180 photographs from the mid-1970s to the present, including new works made for the exhibition and never before published, the volume is a vivid exploration of Sherman's sustained investigation into the construction of contemporary identity and the nature of representation. The book highlights major bodies of work including her seminal "Untitled Film Stills" (1977-80); centerfolds (1981); history portraits (1989-90); head shots (2000-2002); and two recent series on the experience and representation of aging in the context of contemporary obsessions with youth and status. An essay by curator Eva Respini provides an overview of Sherman's career, weaving together art historical analysis and discussions of the artist's working methods, and a contribution by art historian Johanna Burton offers a critical re-examination of Sherman's work in light of her recent series. A conversation between Cindy Sherman and filmmaker John Waters provides an enlightening view into the creative process.
Cindy Sherman (born 1954) is widely recognized as one of the most important and influential artists in contemporary art. To create her photographs, she assumes multiple roles of photographer, model, makeup artist, hairdresser and stylist. With an arsenal of wigs, costumes, makeup, prosthetics and props, the artist has altered her physique and surroundings to create myriad tableaux, from screen siren to clown to aging socialite. Over the past 35 years, Sherman has sustained a provocative investigation into the nature of identity, drawn from movies, television, magazines, the Internet and art history. Sherman lives and works in New York City.

Genres: Art, Photography, Nonfiction

264 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2012

About the author

Cindy Sherman is an American photographer and filmmaker whose self-portraits offer critiques of gender and identity. What made Sherman famous is the use of her own body in roles or personas in her work, with her seminal series Untitled Film Stills (1977–1980) being particularly important. These black-and-white photographs feature the artist herself as a model in various costumes and poses, and are her portrayals of female stereotypes found in film, television, and advertising. Similar to Barbara Kruger, Sherman examines and distorts femininity as a social construct.“I like making images that from a distance seem kind of seductive, colorful, luscious and engaging, and then you realize what you're looking at is something totally opposite,” she reflected. “It seems boring to me to pursue the typical idea of beauty, because that is the easiest and the most obvious way to see the world. It's more challenging to look at the other side.”

Born on January 19, 1954 in Glen Ridge, NJ, the artist abandoned painting for photography while attending the State University of New York at Buffalo, and in 1976, moved to New York to pursue a career as a photographer. In addition to the Untitled Film Stills series, she has continued to explore women as subject matter, often donning elaborate disguises in large-scale color photographs, throughout her career. While her practice has grouped her with the Pictures Generation, along with artists such as Sherrie Levine and Robert Longo, her distinctive blend of performance and photography stands alone. Her work has been the subject of many museum exhibitions, including those at The Museum of Modern Art in 2019, and at the National Portrait Gallery, in London in 2019. Sherman lives and works in New York, NY.

Reviews

[Petra X]

I really love Cindy Sherman's photographs, although I don't think of her as a photographer. I think of her as artist who works in the photographic medium. I'm looking for engagement, not placement or lighting, when I go to her exhibitions or look through a book like this.

Daedalus Books have this $40 book for a bargain price only $19.95. I will buy it from the wholesale division and get a discount on that.

I'm really looking forward to this. I love art and photography books but I can't really afford them. It is one of my indulgences and fictions that I say I am ordering them for the bookshop, knowing the chances of them selling are very small, when I really want them for myself. No cognitive dissonance there :-)

[Lisa Vegan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the type of book I most enjoy after I’ve seen an exhibition and I read this cold, without really knowing anything about the artist. There are a couple excellent, essays and a short interview with John Waters, but the captions for each art piece don’t have the kind of extra information I like to read. While some of the works are shown so that their scale is obvious, and I did appreciate that, I don’t think they captured the power and feelings seeing the museum exhibit would. Seeing the exhibit first and then revisiting the art in the book would probably have felt more satisfying than just reading the book. Most of the art is not my cup of tea though, so if I’d seen the exhibit, this might not have been a book I’d have felt compelled to then read. It’s too narcissistic in my opinion, even though I understand the wanting to work mostly alone thing and know that’s why most of the photos are of the artist. Many of the pages’ art subject matter were so horrifying I just wanted to turn the page, as quickly as I could. But I have to admit the art was brilliant in a way as it gave me a lot to think about, and some of it, a relatively small amount, was enjoyable to view. I’m not sure how much I’d actually have a good time, but if a Cindy Sherman exhibit came to one of the museums where I keep a membership, and there was no additional charge, I’d probably go see it. I’d have to be in the right mood though. I actually know a couple young people who are artists and whose art (much of it photography) sort of reminds me of Sherman’s. I have to assume she’s been an influence on them. I’m going to ask. I’m a huge fan of art books, but I can’t say this is one of the many that’s brought me pleasure. I think I recommend this book for readers who are already fans of the artist or maybe those who often appreciate disturbing and/or unusual art that has the potential to make them feel and think. This wasn’t the right book for me at this time. 2 ½ stars

[kylee]

even knowing every person is sherman, i’m always so surprised that they’re her. she’s truly crafted a skill in changing how she looks. also i bet her studio looks unbelievably insane

[William West · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've long been a big Sherman fan. I can't say that this major retrospective changed my thinking about her work, but it reaffirmed that she is definitely one of the most important artists alive.
Going into the show, I meditated upon the fact that I hesitated to call Sherman a "photographer," even though that is blatantly the medium in which she works. Even though the lighting and composition in the photos is generally superlative one does not look at a Sherman for its aesthetic allure but for the interaction one feels with the model(s)- the one who is "not one." I arrived at the conclusion that Sherman is, for me at least, a performance artist above all.
But to categorize Sherman at all seems a disservice, for there is no one line of meaningful action within her work. Some of the pieces that struck me most were the most painterly, or photogenic, in the exhibit, such as her "Classical" cycle- recreating canonical styles, and in some cases specific works, of painting. The lighting deployed in the photographs was worthy of the great European master-painters, whose mastery Sherman nonetheless puts into question through her very (feminine) presence within the works- a presence that would have been both technologically and discursively impossible when the original painting styles and works were being produced.
The other highlight for me was Sherman's "disaster" cycle, in which her, or any, physical presence is minimized. Her body is seen only as a tableau for bodily fluids, as if the relation between the two had undergone a revolution from below: blood, vomit and tears now reigning over their host-mother.

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

These lines from the intro really get at the essence of her work: “Her work speaks to the conspiratorial role that images play in society’s self-visualization and reinforces the artificial nature of these images. Her pictures remind us about our own complicated relationship to identify and representation….”

Her work made me question the many images of ourselves we personally construct: to impress others, fit into our social class, conform to gender norms, become a sexual object, etc. How much does the image of ourself impact our identity? And how much of that is our true self?

[?0?0?0 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eva Respini released this book, knowingly or not, to give an answer to the question: is it possible to take an obsession with Cindy Sherman any further whilst being bowled over by a large format book with a strong collection of her work?
My deepest apologies for even asking.

[Un cuarto literario · Rating 5 out of 5]

Una maravilla imprescindible.

[jun]

my art teacher left this book in our workroom so I ended up flipping through every page when my head felt fuzzy

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

The photos in the book are much better than nothing but they lack the impact of the full-size ones in the MoMA exhibit earlier this year. The Respini and Burton essays are interesting if a bit "jargonistic" but the Sherman/Waters interview seemed more enlightening. And the shuffling of chronology gets a mixed response, at least from me.

[Brett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Published to coincide with the MOMA show. Includes an interview by John Waters.

[Beth666ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love her photographs.

[Kelley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Boy do I love Cindy Sherman. She's weird. Wild. Odd. Disturbing and so interesting.

[Erin Tuzuner · Rating 5 out of 5]

A picture's worth a thousand words, if you're a non academic. Intention, interpretation, politics: all inform and invalidate the work of artists.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an excellent look into the work, thought process and art trajectory of Cindy Sherman.
I recommend this to anyone wanting to know more about her work.