Cindy Sherman (1954-) USA

Cindy Sherman is a photographer, pop and conceptual artist and is currently considered to be one of the world’s leading representatives of staged photography. Sherman attended college in Buffalo, New York, and her major breakthrough came with the Untitled Film Stills series, consisting of black and white photographs of herself, wearing costumes and make-up. Through these portraits Sherman gained recognition from viewers, making it possible for them to see female stereotypes as rhetorical formulas or clichés. Sherman found inspiration in the Hollywood films of her childhood and their female stereotypes. Sherman switched to color photography in the 1980s and still uses herself as a model to problematize the view of women and gender stereotypes. She prefers to work with motifs such as appetite, nausea, disease and violence. Sherman has also worked as a fashion photographer. Sherman is the recipient of the Hasselblad Award.