Jamella- Cindy Sherman effect

                                                            The Cindy Sherman Effect 

Jamella Williams- Alone at breakfast 

Cindy Sherman has shown herself to be the ultimate master of self-morphing, utilizing everything from old-fashioned makeup and prosthetics to digital technology, inventing and portraying extraordinary alter egos and multiple identities that brilliantly reflect our image-saturated culture—and in the process, inventing her own genre, (Hoban,2012). 

 

I agree with this quote; I believe Cindy came along too early for her generation; if not, she was a subconscious blueprint this era, or might I this era of social media. As said later down in the passage, "Her work presaged the media age that we live in now and how we respond to it," The way she portrays versatility in her looks and creates these looks to compliment or add to her environment is what makes her pieces artful. Like her, pictures we see so commonly on Instagram, where users aid to become the center through their creations of different personas with the use of material vanity to produce art that compliments their environment through allowing it to embody them.

                                                             Jamella Williams- Alone at bath 

"And by limiting her subject matter strictly to herself, while at the same time excavating countless permutations she inspired a generation of younger artists to explore their own identities,"(Hoban, 2012). 

I agree with this quote; Cindy in art, it's almost like instead of adapting to the environment, she lets the environment adjust to her and her miraculous persona's. Similar to today, we beautify the environment with our artistic outlooks, whether it be a different hairdo, an exotic outfit, acrylics, or other jewelry's that enhance our features; through this we aim to become one with the environment unifying both unique pieces into one ultimately elaborate work of art. 

                                                                      Paragraph 

Through my pictures, I showed through imagery the beauty of being alone, in some parts, its like Cindy, a form of self-exploration- the way I view my selfies are me exploring myself in every aspect of the common world, and me understanding the beauty of doing and embracing things on their own. 

Cindy Sherman Inspired Work- Melanie Uraga

Cindy Sherman inspired photo, 2022

Inspired photo depicting worry by Mel Uraga, 2022

“We live in the era of YouTube fame and reality-TV shows and makeovers, where you can be anything you want to be any minute of the day, and artists are responding to that. Cindy was one of the first to explore the idea of the malleability or fluidity of identity.” (para 3)

 

-This one stuck out to me because through Cindy’s work she demonstrated that you can literally be anything that you want, not just in photographs but also in shows and YouTube. Photoshop is something that is now trending, and people are free to express themselves in several different ways. Photoshop doesn’t just have to be in a way to trick people into seeing you in a way that you are not, it is also a way to show yourself in a way that they might not see. 

 

“By limiting her subject matter strictly to herself, while at the same time excavating countless permutations, she inspired a generation of younger artists to explore their own identities across a range of mediums” (para 11)

-In being creative and way ahead of her time, Cindy has managed to influence thousands of people in a way that we still portray ourselves in different ways through photoshop and distortion. 

 

Selfie Inspiration

Like Cindy Sherman showed, there are several ways to portray one’s self and explored different boundaries. In my selfie, I showed self-portrait through body language as opposed to showing something through facial features. As someone who is constantly anxious and over-thinking, I tried to show that through my own body language which is why my hand is placed on my cheek. 

Cindy Sherman - Alanna Ciarlandini

 

Narcissus by Alanna Ciarlandini

 ‘Nobody is playing with photography. Let’s take that as our tool.’”

In the images shown above, I attempt to portray a girl who likes to admire herself in the mirror. I chose to include the use of the mirror as it is her form of self-obsession. These images are inspired by Cindy Sherman's Unstilled Film #2 1977. Sherman constantly models her photos after stereotypical portrayals of women. These characters never portray Sherman similar to how the images don't portray me but the images can be used as a tool of awareness. 

 “I think it has made me realize that we’ve all chosen who we are in terms of how we want the world to see us,” 

Cindy Sherman speaks of her photography as a learning experience. Her dressing into her characters gives insight when it comes to putting yourself in someone else's shoes. How would I be as a girl who was obsessed with her reflection? Would I be perceived as crazed and absorbed? These are the questions I ask myself when I modeled for these photos. Whether or not I decide to act out on the embodiment of my character is up to me which is the point Sherman makes in the quote above. 

Cindy Sherman and identity

 

 Judgmental old lady by Aida Deleg

 What these images represent and how they act as self portraits:

I was inspired by Cindy Sherman, Untitled #474, 2008 which is an image of a a rich, stoic, older woman who has been forced to keep up with harmful beauty standards. I was thinking of how some viewers would see her image and judge it with statements like "why is this old lady trying to look young" or "she looks ridiculous and should act her age." I wanted to portray these people as a judgmental close minded elder who is always ready to give her opinions on anyone who passes by her. She whispers loudly and cares little of how her words may negatively affect someone. When she is confronted she acts shocked and denies ever saying anything that goes over the line. However, this elder is like this because she was also surrounded by overly critical people. Maybe we all have a judgmental side to us even if it is unconsciously due to our environment. There is a difference between constructive criticism and hateful commentary. You may ask why I portrayed the image of an older person and not a younger person, to that I say its based on my memory and a collection of stories I have of older people who are rude. Also, who doesn't know the glaring eyes or disapproving eyes your mom gave you when you were a mischievous child. Certain habits and gestures are passed from grandparent to parent to child.

"A number of younger artists are very much indebted to Sherman in their exploration of not just identity but also the nature of representation. Now we all take it for granted that a photograph can be Photoshopped. We live in the era of YouTube fame and reality-TV shows and makeovers, where you can be anything you want to be any minute of the day, and artists are responding to that. Cindy was one of the first to explore the idea of the malleability or fluidity of identity.”

-quote from The Cindy Sherman Effect by Phoebe Hoban, 3rd paragraph 

I think when a person is in front of the camera they are not their everyday self. The camera is just an extended human eye lens which we look at and immediately act differently. Most of the time we unconsciously or consciously thinking about how others might perceive us or how someone else looks. The identity is based on the surrounding environment or what we choose to surrounds ourselves in. We are always observing, and we start imitating at a young age and that doesn't seem to stop even when we are grown. The identity continues to change and is built upon, its fluid.

“I think it has made me realize that we’ve all chosen who we are in terms of how we want the world to see us,” . . .

-quote from The Cindy Sherman Effect by Phoebe Hoban, 28th paragraph

We are aware of each other so it seems that we all choose an identity(ies) that meld with certain groups or worlds. Sherman says "world" but I feel like we all have different ideas of the world so it should be worlds. Identities form groups and follow like sheep. Some people have a rough time either forming an identity or accepting their identity. 

the cindy sherman effect portraits

portrait 1

portrait 2 (mirrors)

 “I think it has made me realize that we’ve all chosen who we are in terms of how we want the world to see us"

everything we wear and do is a presentation of our identity to those around us. as we change and grow so do our styles and habits, and i chose to take these photos in front of this mirror specifically because i think a lot of my own personal growth has happened while living in this apartment.

"And by limiting her subject matter strictly to herself, while at the same time excavating countless permutations, she inspired a generation of younger artists to explore their own identities across a range of mediums"

usually having trouble working with other people when it comes to art and music, i'm often drawn to work on projects by myself, and, by extension, make myself the subject matter of the art. i feel like i know myself better than anyone else, so why make art for them and not myself?

Cindy Sherman Inspired Photos

 

Inspired Photo #1

 

Cindy Sherman, Untitled (Vanity Mirror)

Inspired Photo #2

Quote #1: “No wonder the work of so many artists parallels Sherman’s or at least mines similar conceptual veins…the pressure to conform to the images of perfection promulgated through television, film, and advertising.” (Hoban, 4).

-        I think that television, films, and advertising have had an enormous impact on so many minds. Especially when it comes to younger people such as teenagers and children. As a young girl, it can be so easy to feel lesser than by seeing models on TV and people who are considered to be perfect. If one doesn’t fit the standard, they can feel an intense pressure to fit into society’s standard no matter the damage that it can cause to ones mental health.

Quote #2: “And then there is a whole new crop of artists whose sensibility has been shaped by the Internet and social media, major influences that didn’t even exist when Sherman first began her photographic odyssey.” (Hoban, 5).

-        There are so many people today who have been shaped by social media, whether it be their humor, personality, likes, and dislikes. People let the internet decide who they are and what to like and what not to like. It’s so easy for a person to lose sight of who they are and what it means to be who you are. 

Weekly Selfie 2 : Cindy Sherman - Riya Bhajan

 

Original - Cindy Sherman's Librarian

 “A number of younger artists are very much indebted to Sherman in their exploration of not just identity but also the nature of representation. Now we all take it for granted that a photograph can be Photoshopped. We live in the era of YouTube fame and reality-TV shows and makeovers, where you can be anything you want to be any minute of the day, and artists are responding to that. Cindy was one of the first to explore the idea of the malleability or fluidity of identity.” (Eva Respini)

I chose this quote because this is initially what inspired my weekly selfie. The action of photoshop and editing the way you look can easily be achieved and look real. Influencers, models, and celebrities promote an unachievable beauty standard by making their photoshopped pictures look so realistic, so realistic it looks natural and undetectable. With Photoshop it's so easy to transform your appearance but Cindy Sherman artistic achieved transformation without photoshop for more creative reasons.

"Sherman refuses to take any credit for her innovations. What has she herself discovered through her work? “I think it has made me realize that we’ve all chosen who we are in terms of how we want the world to see us,” she says."

In the concept of transformation, we all can alter how we look, become who we want to be and people would always perceive us differently. Cindy Sherman depicts the many ways to transform your appearance and pick up a different persona.

Weekly Selfie

I was inspired by Cindy Sherman to transform my appearance in this week's assignment. I recreated one of her film stills, where she is in a library, wearing a long blonde wig as she mysteriously looks back. Instead of using a wig, I used an app called FaceApp to make my dark hair blonde and I was able to give myself bangs with a feature on this app. FaceApp went viral for effortless and realistic being able to alter one's appearance, you can do anything to subtlety or drastically change your appearance, from makeup to hair. Photoshop negatively affects everyone, the viewers or unimpressionable young girls are constantly comparing themselves to influencers and celebrities wishing they can look like unrealistic people. The person photoshopping themselves is also being affected, they may have body dysmorphia. This means they are constantly trying to alter the way they want to look but when they look in the mirror or look at un-photoshopped pictures of themselves they are not the same person, they hate how they actually look. This is a self-portrait mainly representing the ways I can alter myself to become someone who I may want to be, but it is not detectable by someone who has never seen me before because of modern-day photoshop.