A photograph is a secret about a secret.
The more it tells you the less you know.—Diane Arbus
When I was in New York earlier this month for the Book Expo, I stopped in at MOMA to take in the Cindy Sherman retrospective before it vanished. As it was Saturday, the throngs were milling, the docents were expounding, and stricken mothers were trying to explain to small fry some of the more outré aspects of Sherman's work.
While always depicting herself as a character, Sherman's photographs range from smallish black-and-white "untitled film stills" (above) to larger, color "film stills," to huge, canvas-like apparitions of flamboyant women coping with aging, grotesque clowns, and mordant parodies of Old Master paintings (below). I love to know your thoughts on any or all of these samples of Sherman's art.
These are beautiful, but I must admit to being a tad creeped out by the clown guy with the sparkly bowler hat.
ReplyDeletemoi aussi!
ReplyDeleteThat clown will definitely be haunting my dreams tonight.
ReplyDeleteAwwww, Rainbow Randolph?? Really? :-( He just wants to give you a small taste of his ambiguous pink juice!!!!
DeleteBelieve me, that was one of the more innocuous clowns in the show! Clowns are scary enough w/out the Sherman touch!
DeleteI love the one of the woman lighting her cigarette. The black and white movie still of the woman sitting on the couch is sort of creepy. The statue in the corner reminds me of Beetlejuice when the pieces of art come to life and start attacking.
ReplyDeleteAll the more interesting when you realize she does everything herself--staging, costumes, decor, makeup
DeleteBlack and white photos are awesome always. The clown ones is super creepy though!
ReplyDeleteI love it when Cindy Sherman is the subject in her own photo's!!!
ReplyDeleteSaw a wonderful photography exhibit last year @ the Baltimore Museum of Art. Both Arbus and Sherman were the highlights for me!
ReplyDeleteShe's like a little girl playing dress-up in front of her mother's mirror--as narcissistic as Snow White's Queen!
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