Shania Phillips
HOW DO CINDY SHERMAN AND FRIDA KAHLO COMMENT ON GENDER
ROLES AND STEREOYPES IN THEIR ARTWORK?
I am going explore how Cindy Sherman and Frida Kahlo adopt different identities in their artwork,
from the overly feminine to the overly masculine, in order to comment on social issues such as the
stereotypes and roles projected on women by society. I will explore the significance of their use of
self-portraits, clothes and makeup to create their different identities, analysing how their artwork
differs in content but reflects a similar feminist purpose. I was initially drawn to Frida Kahlo and
Cindy Sherman due to my interest in political activism, particularly feminism. I admire how Frida
Kahlo became such an icon in the art world despite her painful disability and life under the shadow
of Diego Rivera. I also like how she incorporates her heritage into her paintings, including aspects of
Mexican culture. In terms of Cindy Sherman, I admire her range of abilities as a photographer, model
and director and her defiance against traditional female gender roles, using her art to satirize these
stereotypes.
Cindy Sherman was born on 19 January 1954, in New Jersey. She grew up
in Huntington, Long Island, where she first started painting at the visual art
department at Buffalo State College. However, she quickly abandoned this
medium in favour of photography, claiming “[T]here was nothing more to
say [through painting]”1. Her study of photography at Buffalo State college,
influenced by fellow artists Barbara Jo Revelle and Robert Longo, led to
her iconic Untitled Film Series (1977-1980) which projected her into the
spotlight. In this series of sixty-nine black-and-white photographs,
Sherman adopts a series of different identities related to 1960s
Hollywood, created through “a lot of discarded accoutrements from the Figure 2 Instagram Selfies
2
1940s, 1950s and 1960s” that Sherman collected whilst at college. This series of photographs
demonstrated the fracture between authentic self-representation and staging, with Sherman using
the camera to “examine and deconstruct the imaged interpretation of both social and sexual
identity”3. Sherman then went on to explore female identity further, adapting to the evolution of
societal ideas of beauty. For example, her collection of photographs on ‘trophy wives’ reflect the
concept of self-made celebrities and reality tv stars, such as that of the Kardashians. In these photos
she is shown to be hyperbolic in her use of makeup and clothing to convey the artificial and worrying
way in which beauty is changing, questioning its values and whether it is progressing in the right
direction. Examples of the names of these photos include “some collector’s wife, maybe, or a
mogul’s wife” and “an ex-bit player, who’s still thinking about the Hollywood lifestyle.” In the
present day, Sherman is using social media to convey similar attitudes on the values of
contemporary beauty through the use of Instagram app filters and other photography editing
software to alter the appearance of her face.
Frida Kahlo was born on 6 July 1907, in Mexico and her early influences involved
helping her father, a Jewish Hungarian immigrant, with his photography. Her
heritage is significant to her identity as an artist and the subject she paints, often
exploring the dialectic between her Mexican and European indigenous identities; an
idea clearly portrayed in the painting: The Two Fridas. This then initiated her
exploration of gender roles and stereotypes within her artwork, experimenting with
the overly feminine and the overly masculine, such as her 1939 ‘Self Portrait with
cropped hair’. By fashioning herself, “she extended her creative process from the
1
"Biography - Cindy Sherman - Photographer, Model, Director, Actor, Avant-Garde Images, Doll
Figure 3: Frida and Diego
Parts
Rivera, 1931 by and
FridaProsthetics,
Kahlo Movies". www.cindysherman.com. Retrieved 2020-09-10.
2
Tate
3
WSIMAG
, Shania Phillips
canvas onto her own body”.4 She is famous for such self-portraits, particularly
those which reflect her Mexican heritage and identity in addition to her
disability: at 18 years old, Kahlo was involved in a bus accident which resulted in
a fractured spine, a crushed pelvis, and broken foot, leaving her partially
disabled and in pain for the rest of her life. This then shaped a lot of her
artwork, looking at the meaning of religion, pain and loneliness, which is why
she is considered by some to be “an alluring victim for those drawn to notions
of victimization and sadomasochism”5, whilst others concerned with psychology
consider the “gritty strength with which she endured her pain” to be “salutary” 6.
Another thematic concern in Kahlo’s work is her shadowed life as the wife of
the ‘great artist’ Diego Rivera, whom she met whilst studying Medicine at the
National Preparatory School in Mexico City. This is continued after her death
due to her celebrity and cult-like fame in the twenty-first century, which is often referred to as
‘Fridamania’, resulting in the “links to Kahlo’s heritage and political beliefs” in her
artwork being “superseded by her beatification”7.
In her series, ‘Untitled Film Stills’, Sherman plays different stereotypical roles of
women often portrayed in 1950s and 1960s Hollywood to illustrate how they were
objectified by the male gaze and had limited freedom in creativity. This image is
labelled #6 to emphasise the sense of insignificance due to it being a common
image in the media during the time period. A closer analysis reveals an
appreciation for the minor details of Sherman’s photography, such as the inclusion
of a hand mirror faced down on the bed beside her to suggest the concept of
vanity, perfectionism and beauty. Sherman chooses to keep the pictures black and
white, so they are a true replica of the original types of photographs taken in the
1950s, whilst parodying the typical poses, costume and makeup choices of the
Figure 6 Untitled Film Still #6
models. This allows her to protest against past sexism of the 20 th century from the
perspective, knowledge and moral standpoint of modern-day values. Sherman fills up the majority of
the space in the photograph, suggesting vanity was a key characteristic of the female identity at the
time of the 1950s as she is the sole subject of objectification. Sherman fully encompasses the role
she intends to portray in the photograph and puts meaning behind each decision: the purpose of
women during the time period was to be objectified by the male gaze as the voyeur, their identity
was dependent on their physical attributes and ability to seduce.
In Kahlo’s ‘Self Portrait with Cropped Hair’, Kahlo is shown to be sitting on a chair dressed in a man’s
suit after having cut her long hair. This artwork is thought to symbolise her sense of rebellion of her
split with her husband Diego Rivera who loved her because of her femininity: her long hair and
traditional Mexican beauty. I believe her choice of clothing highlights the sentiment of emancipation
she felt after her split and how she is now independent from her arguably toxic and turbulent
relationship. I find this painting very shocking in comparison to Kahlo’s other self-portraits which
usually exemplify her traditional Mexican beauty. The associated long hair, traditional dresses and
flowers are not present in the artwork, almost rendering her unrecognisable. The colours are dark
and dismal with a colour palette of mainly browns and blues (with the exception of the yellow
bamboo chair which even still appears to have a dark undertone to it) to produce a moody
atmosphere. This choice of colours is significant due to the presence of very bright colours such as
Figure 7 Self Portrait with reds, blues and golds in the rest of her artwork. Thus, her colour palette is
Cropped Hair
4
Widewalls
5
Deyoung
6
Deyoung
7
Spiked online
HOW DO CINDY SHERMAN AND FRIDA KAHLO COMMENT ON GENDER
ROLES AND STEREOYPES IN THEIR ARTWORK?
I am going explore how Cindy Sherman and Frida Kahlo adopt different identities in their artwork,
from the overly feminine to the overly masculine, in order to comment on social issues such as the
stereotypes and roles projected on women by society. I will explore the significance of their use of
self-portraits, clothes and makeup to create their different identities, analysing how their artwork
differs in content but reflects a similar feminist purpose. I was initially drawn to Frida Kahlo and
Cindy Sherman due to my interest in political activism, particularly feminism. I admire how Frida
Kahlo became such an icon in the art world despite her painful disability and life under the shadow
of Diego Rivera. I also like how she incorporates her heritage into her paintings, including aspects of
Mexican culture. In terms of Cindy Sherman, I admire her range of abilities as a photographer, model
and director and her defiance against traditional female gender roles, using her art to satirize these
stereotypes.
Cindy Sherman was born on 19 January 1954, in New Jersey. She grew up
in Huntington, Long Island, where she first started painting at the visual art
department at Buffalo State College. However, she quickly abandoned this
medium in favour of photography, claiming “[T]here was nothing more to
say [through painting]”1. Her study of photography at Buffalo State college,
influenced by fellow artists Barbara Jo Revelle and Robert Longo, led to
her iconic Untitled Film Series (1977-1980) which projected her into the
spotlight. In this series of sixty-nine black-and-white photographs,
Sherman adopts a series of different identities related to 1960s
Hollywood, created through “a lot of discarded accoutrements from the Figure 2 Instagram Selfies
2
1940s, 1950s and 1960s” that Sherman collected whilst at college. This series of photographs
demonstrated the fracture between authentic self-representation and staging, with Sherman using
the camera to “examine and deconstruct the imaged interpretation of both social and sexual
identity”3. Sherman then went on to explore female identity further, adapting to the evolution of
societal ideas of beauty. For example, her collection of photographs on ‘trophy wives’ reflect the
concept of self-made celebrities and reality tv stars, such as that of the Kardashians. In these photos
she is shown to be hyperbolic in her use of makeup and clothing to convey the artificial and worrying
way in which beauty is changing, questioning its values and whether it is progressing in the right
direction. Examples of the names of these photos include “some collector’s wife, maybe, or a
mogul’s wife” and “an ex-bit player, who’s still thinking about the Hollywood lifestyle.” In the
present day, Sherman is using social media to convey similar attitudes on the values of
contemporary beauty through the use of Instagram app filters and other photography editing
software to alter the appearance of her face.
Frida Kahlo was born on 6 July 1907, in Mexico and her early influences involved
helping her father, a Jewish Hungarian immigrant, with his photography. Her
heritage is significant to her identity as an artist and the subject she paints, often
exploring the dialectic between her Mexican and European indigenous identities; an
idea clearly portrayed in the painting: The Two Fridas. This then initiated her
exploration of gender roles and stereotypes within her artwork, experimenting with
the overly feminine and the overly masculine, such as her 1939 ‘Self Portrait with
cropped hair’. By fashioning herself, “she extended her creative process from the
1
"Biography - Cindy Sherman - Photographer, Model, Director, Actor, Avant-Garde Images, Doll
Figure 3: Frida and Diego
Parts
Rivera, 1931 by and
FridaProsthetics,
Kahlo Movies". www.cindysherman.com. Retrieved 2020-09-10.
2
Tate
3
WSIMAG
, Shania Phillips
canvas onto her own body”.4 She is famous for such self-portraits, particularly
those which reflect her Mexican heritage and identity in addition to her
disability: at 18 years old, Kahlo was involved in a bus accident which resulted in
a fractured spine, a crushed pelvis, and broken foot, leaving her partially
disabled and in pain for the rest of her life. This then shaped a lot of her
artwork, looking at the meaning of religion, pain and loneliness, which is why
she is considered by some to be “an alluring victim for those drawn to notions
of victimization and sadomasochism”5, whilst others concerned with psychology
consider the “gritty strength with which she endured her pain” to be “salutary” 6.
Another thematic concern in Kahlo’s work is her shadowed life as the wife of
the ‘great artist’ Diego Rivera, whom she met whilst studying Medicine at the
National Preparatory School in Mexico City. This is continued after her death
due to her celebrity and cult-like fame in the twenty-first century, which is often referred to as
‘Fridamania’, resulting in the “links to Kahlo’s heritage and political beliefs” in her
artwork being “superseded by her beatification”7.
In her series, ‘Untitled Film Stills’, Sherman plays different stereotypical roles of
women often portrayed in 1950s and 1960s Hollywood to illustrate how they were
objectified by the male gaze and had limited freedom in creativity. This image is
labelled #6 to emphasise the sense of insignificance due to it being a common
image in the media during the time period. A closer analysis reveals an
appreciation for the minor details of Sherman’s photography, such as the inclusion
of a hand mirror faced down on the bed beside her to suggest the concept of
vanity, perfectionism and beauty. Sherman chooses to keep the pictures black and
white, so they are a true replica of the original types of photographs taken in the
1950s, whilst parodying the typical poses, costume and makeup choices of the
Figure 6 Untitled Film Still #6
models. This allows her to protest against past sexism of the 20 th century from the
perspective, knowledge and moral standpoint of modern-day values. Sherman fills up the majority of
the space in the photograph, suggesting vanity was a key characteristic of the female identity at the
time of the 1950s as she is the sole subject of objectification. Sherman fully encompasses the role
she intends to portray in the photograph and puts meaning behind each decision: the purpose of
women during the time period was to be objectified by the male gaze as the voyeur, their identity
was dependent on their physical attributes and ability to seduce.
In Kahlo’s ‘Self Portrait with Cropped Hair’, Kahlo is shown to be sitting on a chair dressed in a man’s
suit after having cut her long hair. This artwork is thought to symbolise her sense of rebellion of her
split with her husband Diego Rivera who loved her because of her femininity: her long hair and
traditional Mexican beauty. I believe her choice of clothing highlights the sentiment of emancipation
she felt after her split and how she is now independent from her arguably toxic and turbulent
relationship. I find this painting very shocking in comparison to Kahlo’s other self-portraits which
usually exemplify her traditional Mexican beauty. The associated long hair, traditional dresses and
flowers are not present in the artwork, almost rendering her unrecognisable. The colours are dark
and dismal with a colour palette of mainly browns and blues (with the exception of the yellow
bamboo chair which even still appears to have a dark undertone to it) to produce a moody
atmosphere. This choice of colours is significant due to the presence of very bright colours such as
Figure 7 Self Portrait with reds, blues and golds in the rest of her artwork. Thus, her colour palette is
Cropped Hair
4
Widewalls
5
Deyoung
6
Deyoung
7
Spiked online
