THE CONTACT COPIES OF CINDY SHERMAN’S ‘UNTITLED FILM STILLS’ AND THE DISCREPANCY BETWEEN STAGED PRODUCTION AND IMPROVISATION IN THE PHOTO-TAKING PROCESS
Keywords:
photography, self-portrait, cinema, staged production, identity, feminism, copy without the original negativeAbstract
The current article reviews Cindy Sherman’s series ‘Untitled Film Stills’ and analyses the relationship between staged production and improvisation in the photo-taking process. The contact copies show that, contrary to the popular understanding of these works as strictly staged masquerade, the random detail, gesture or facial expression contribute actively to the construction of social and individual identity. The study analyses the contact copies of twelve photos and discovers an intriguing discrepancy in the selection principle. In some of the photos Sherman intentionally excludes any specific facial expressions, opting to stick to the individual obscurity of her objects, while in others she chooses the most vivid and definitive character.
Thus, instead of constructing a consistent image of stereotypical social roles, undertaken by women who lack any awareness, Sherman rather shows the different degrees of individual inclusion into the social field.
