Identity is the set of qualities, beliefs, personality traits, appearance, and/or expressions that characterize a person or a group. Identity emerges during childhood as children start to comprehend their self-concept, and it remains a consistent aspect throughout different stages of life.
FEMEININITY
Femininity (also called womanliness) is a set of attributes, behaviors, and roles generally associated with women and girls. Femininity can be understood as socially constructed, and there is also some evidence that some behaviors considered feminine are influenced by both cultural factors and biological factors.
MASCULINITY
Masculinity (also called manhood or manliness) is a set of attributes, behaviours, and roles associated with men and boys. Masculinity can be theoretically understood as socially constructed. and there is also evidence that some behaviours considered masculine are influenced by both cultural factors and biological factors. To what extent masculinity is biologically or socially influenced is subject to debate. It is distinct from the definition of the biological male sex. as anyone can exhibit masculine traits. Standards of masculinity vary across different cultures and historical periods. In Western cultures, its meaning is traditionally drawn from being contrasted with femininity.
how can identity be found…
In a place:
An important mechanism that supports place identity is the attachment to a specific place. Individuals often develop an emotional bond to their life space, essentially their home and the neighbourhood, but often also urban places and spaces on a larger scale.
in a belonging:
Who and where we belong influences our sense of identity. Other people may believe they know our identity, but in reality, they may not know us at all. Where we belong is influenced more by family than friends. The identity of one changes with different relationships. The sense of belonging is one of our basic human needs. It helps us orient each other in an ever-changing environment.
Your environment:
When we are in familiar surroundings, we tend to feel more secure and strengthen our sense of identity. We feel more in control of our lives and boost our self-confidence. On the other hand, when we lack an established place, a home, we may feel lost and disconnected.
upbringing:
Many of our emotional ties, and even our relationships with money, people and God are influenced by our childhood experiences. Role models have a massive effect on a child’s self-identity. Many of our emotional ties, and even our relationships with money, people and God are influenced by our childhood experiences.
gender identity:
Gender enters into all our social relations. When people interact, their view of themselves, including their identity and their rights and possibilities, comes up against the way they are perceived by other people, and the way that others behave towards them.
cultural identity:
Culture is a defining feature of a person’s identity, contributing to how they see themselves and the groups with which they identify. A person’s understanding of their own and other’s identities develops from birth and is shaped by the values and attitudes prevalent at home and in the surrounding community.
social identity:
Our family, upbringing, environment, genetic makeup (psychological and physical), and social interactions all play a role in identity formation.
geographical identity:
We can speak to how our geographic locations shape the languages we speak, the practices we engage in, our relationships to the people around us, and how we imagine the future
political identity
This can include identification with a political party, but also positions on specific political issues, nationalism, inter-ethnic relations or more abstract ideological themes. Political identities develop in individuals and evolve over time
Double or multiple exposures in photography are an illusion created by layering images over the top of each other. This can be achieved by creating layers and then using opacity control. Artists use these techniques to explore surrealist ideas and evoke dream-like imagery or composition that explores the idea of time.
Michael Betzner
Idris Khan
Man Ray
My picture
While researching Idris Khan, I was inspired by his approach to multi exposure that focuses on architecture. In his work, he layers differently positioned photographs of a building over each other in an editing software while altering their opacity so all layers are visible. After this is complete, he makes his photographs black and white with a high contrast to highlight his artistic goal of the passage of time. Due to my artistic goal being similar, I decided to create my composition based off his process and stylistic results. I visited a church during a well lit afternoon and took many photographs of the building and the environment around it; moving around and across the church for each shot. With my collection of images coming out with different angles and framing, they could easily be placed over each other in ways that would allow for each layer to be visible. After importing them all into photoshop, I took some time to toggle the opacity of each individual image until I ended up with a result that I found to be effective and that looked similar to Khan’s work. For my final edits, I made the finished composition black and white while slightly toggling the contrast. Something I noticed in my final photograph was the tone being built on the lower half of the picture. This was due to the shared and similar visuals at the bottom of my collection of photos, which were layered over each other and therefore building darkness. This is actually seen to be the case with Khan’s photographs too, which is useful in order to make my own composition look like something from his work.
Photo Montage
Photo montage work includes various types of image editing in which multiple photographs are cut up and combined to form one new image. This can involve cutting up printed images or working to manipulate photographs in photoshop. A montage is an assembly of images that relate to each other in some way to create a single work or part of a work of art.
John Stezaker
Kensuoke Koike
Jesse Draxler
My Picture
Using one of my discarded photos from my butterfly lighting photoshoot, I used photoshop to manipulate the face in my photograph. I was inspired by Kensuoke Koike to focus on this idea due to its simple but effective visuals. Koike works with close up photographs of faces where he selects various shapes from the image and moves or turns them across the picture. This creates the idea of disorientation and corruption in self image. Due to Koike’s motif of circles and geometric shapes within his work, I decided that on my close up photograph I would create a spiral in the middle of her face. With Koike previously creating similar works, I selected circles in the centre of the frame with them getting smaller and smaller as they reach the middle. With each shape I selected, I spun them all slightly clockwise; turning them gradually more and more as the circles get closer to the centre of the image. Finally, I edited my picture into greyscale while also sharping the shadows of the whole image in order to bring attention to the formal elements of my composition. The majority of Koike’s work also share this similar colour palette so I thought this would be another way to make a successful replica of one of his pieces.
Juxtaposition
Juxtaposition in photography is placing two images together to show contrast or similarities. It is a powerful technique that can be utilized to create visually compelling images. By purposefully placing contrasting elements within a frame, photographers can engage viewers with thought provoking compositions. These elements can vary from colours, textures, shapes, concepts and emotions.
Nikita Pirogov
Andrea Chapman
Martin Toft
My Picture
A photographer who peaked my interest in juxtaposition photography is Andrea Chapman. Chapman, my personal favourite photographer, is a sensitive artist who is drawn to fragile things as well as the relationship between humans and nature. This connection of nature and the human body and life is something I am interested in and keen to involve within my own work. Diptych’s, which are commonly used in Chapman’s work, are photography pieces made up of two panels that are intended to be displayed side by side. This technique is something I have used in my work due to its obvious links to juxtaposition. In Chapman’s work, I have noticed that she tends to pair together images where the tones are similar, the framing is similar and the composition of objects are similar. While I specifically chose to follow her idea thread of hands comparing to plants, these are all aspects I considered in my final picture. For my composition, I took two different photographs. I photographed my friends hand splayed out in an expressive pose against a black background. After this, I found a plant that I believed to have a similar structure of my first picture. I angled it in the same way as hand picture with the stalk going out the frame, mirroring the arms, and then took the picture on a black background as well. After I aligned the pictures next to each other with the white border, I worked on the pictures individually with some tonal adjustments. I made various saturation and colour tweaks to the photographs in order to further establish the connection between the two images with rules that Chapman follows.
Identity is anything that makes you unique, what represents you and what is personal to you, this could be something going on within your life such as being in hospital all the way to something as simple as your gender.
Masculinity
The idea of masculinities refers to the position of men in the gender order. Whitehead and Barrett explain that: Masculinities are those behaviours, languages and practices, existing in specific cultural and organisational locations, which are commonly associated with men, thus culturally defined as not feminine
Femininity
Femininity (also called womanliness) is a set of attributes, behaviors, and roles generally associated with women and girls. Femininity can be understood as socially constructed, and there is also some evidence that some behaviours considered feminine are influenced by both cultural factors and biological factors
Where you live and the environment around you shape who you are.
Culture and Community: Your traditions, language, and sense of belonging often come from where you grow up.
Opportunities: Wealthy or poor areas can influence how you see yourself and your future.
City or Nature: Living in a busy city or close to nature can shape your lifestyle and values.
Big Changes: Moving, migration, or tough events like disasters can shift your identity.
Safety and Freedom: Safe places let you be yourself, while unsafe ones might make you cautious.
Online Life: The internet also shapes how you see yourself and connect with others.
In short, your environment helps define who you are and how you see the world.
Cindy Sherman is an American artist and photographer known for creating powerful portraits where she transforms herself into different characters. Her work explores themes of identity, gender, and how society shapes the roles people play.
Her most famous series, Untitled Film Stills, features her posing as women from old Hollywood-style movies, highlighting familiar but stereotypical female roles. Later, her work became darker and more surreal, using props, mannequins, and strange costumes to explore themes like beauty, aging, and human fragility.
Sherman is considered one of the most important artists of her time, with her work displayed in major museums worldwide. Her art challenges us to think about who we are and how much of our identity is shaped by outside forces.
Cindy Sherman’s art challenges the way we think about femininity and masculinity by showing that gender roles are like costumes we put on, not fixed parts of who we are.
Femininity
Questioning Stereotypes: In her famous Untitled Film Stills, she dresses as characters like housewives, movie stars, and “damsels in distress” — roles often seen in old films. By doing this, she highlights how society expects women to fit into certain “types.”
Challenging Beauty Standards: Later, her work features creepy, aging, or distorted figures, forcing us to question society’s obsession with youth, beauty, and perfection in women.
Exposing Society’s Gaze: Her work makes us think about how women are often seen as objects to be looked at, especially in media. By controlling how she’s seen, Sherman flips this power dynamic.
Masculinity
Power and Control: While she focuses more on femininity, Sherman also critiques masculinity. Some of her later works feature clownish, exaggerated “masculine” figures that highlight how fragile and performative power can be.
Gender as Performance: By using wigs, makeup, and costumes to switch between “male” and “female” roles, she shows that masculinity, like femininity, is just another role people play.
This is a piece that is part of her collection
“This is how I look I guess”
Sherman’s work reveals that gender roles aren’t natural they’re performances shaped by media and culture, this shows especially within this piece. Her art encourages us to think about how much of our identity is real and how much is something we’ve been taught to “act out.”
In this piece she shows very few distinctive feminine aspects and masculine aspects, a very obvious feminine aspect which you can see is her big lips with lipstick on, this is linked primarily to females.
The pieces within the collection all have a creepy look to them, it is people with aged and wrinkly skin with photos of overly feminine lips and different eyes placed over the original photo.
This whole collection is about Cindy Sherman reclaiming her self image, social media encourages people to show flawless and perfect versions of themselves, Sherman takes control in her own way. Her weird, distorted self-portraits fight back against beauty standards, showing that self-expression doesn’t have to be done in a certain way and to society’s standards.
Identity refers to our sense of who we are as individuals and as members of social groups. It also refers to our sense of how others may perceive and label us. We develop our identities and the identities of others through our interaction with people close to us, like our family and friends.
Our ideas about our identity are also influenced by social groups to which we belong. This concept is called social identity.
Social identity refers to your idea of yourself based on your memberships in certain groups. While there are many social groups, some of the main ones include ability, age, economy class, gender, nationality, language, race, sexual orientation,…
For many people gender identity corresponds to the gender you were given at birth, for others it means the gender you identity with even if its not the same as the one given to you at birth.
CULTURAL IDENTITY
Cultural identity refers to the shared beliefs, norms, values, and practices that define a group of individuals, often linked by ethnicity, nationality or religion. This identity shapes individuals perceptions of themselves and their relationship to the world influencing their behaviours, attitudes, and interactions with others.
SOCIAL IDENTITY
Social identity is the portion of an individual’s self- concept derived from perceived membership in a relevant social group.
GEOGRAPHICAL IDENTITY
An individual or group’s sense of attachment to the country , region, city, or village in which they live
POLITICAL IDENTITY
Political identity is a form of social identity marking membership of certain groups that share a common struggle for a certain form of power.
LOSS OF IDENTIY
Identity loss refers to the gradual erosion or disappearance of distinct cultural traits, practices, and beliefs, often resulting from external influences or pressures such as globalization. migration, or technological change.
WHAT IS FEMININITY?
Stereotypical Femininity refers to a set of cultural and social norms associated with characteristics typically attributed to women, such as nurturing, empathy, and gracefulness. It often includes qualities life emotional intelligence. Long hair, long eyelashes, painted nails, the colour pink and red,…
WHAT IS MACULINITY?
Stereotypical Masculinity refers to a set of cultural and social norms associated with characteristics typically attributed to men, such as physical strength, assertiveness and independence. It often encompasses traits life competitiveness, emotional stoicism and focus on career success. Short hair, strong looking, facial hair,…
STEREOTYPES
Stereotypes are characteristics that society instinctively attributes to groups of people to classify them according to age, weight, skin colour, gender, etc. Sexual stereotyping involves associating girls and boys with opposite sets of characteristics.
Identity is the set of qualities, beliefs, personality traits, appearance, or expressions that characterize a person. Identity means different things to different people and everyone identifies themselves with something else – could be a job, a role, a parent, a sportsperson – e.g skateboarder, baseball player.
Masculinity is described as the qualities or attributes regarded as characteristic of stereotypical men. The stereotypical qualities for men are strong, brave, uncompassionate, merciless, tough, not easily hurt emotionally.
Femininity is described as the qualities or attributes regarded as characteristic of girls. The stereotypical qualities for women are pretty much the polar opposite – kind, emotional, compassionate, nurturing, gentle.
The appearance of masculinity and femininity are represented in very different ways through photography. Masculinity is generally represented with sharp lighting, accentuating sharp, aggressive muscle lines, jaw lines and pronounced Adams apples – the sharp lighting also plays a part in making the skin look rough and weathered, which plays into the stereotypes of men being strong brave, hard working. On the other hand, femininity is represented with softer lighting, which places more emphasis on things like collar bones and gradual curves – and also plays a part in making skin look softer and smoother, which plays into the characteristic stereotype of women being soft, nurturing.
Photography captures the essence of individuality through portraits for example showing unique features emotions or objects in the image to tell a personal story.
Binary Opposites
According to https://hautlieucreative.co.uk/photo26al/2024/12/10/femininity-vs-masculinity-jac-2/, Binary opposition originated in Saussurean structuralist theory in Linguistics. Binary opposition is the system by which two theoretical opposites are defined and set apart from one another. Using binary opposites can be very helpful in getting inspiration for a photographic project.
Claude Cahun was a French surrealist photographer, sculptor and writer. Cahun was widely known for her self portraits where she crosses the gender boundary’s between male and female, which challenged the strict gender roles at the time. Cahun had a rather androgynous look which she used to help her switch between the gender, which was new for the time as there were stereotypical gender roles, and the thought for people being gender fluid or transgender or anything like that was not thought of. Cahun writes: “Masculine? Feminine? It depends on the situation. Neuter is the only gender that always suits me. However, Cahun mainly referred to herself using grammatically feminine words however described her gender as gender fluid.
She was born 25th of October 1894 in Nantes to a well-off Jewish family. When Cahun was four years old her mother unfortunately was suffering of a mental illness which led to her mother being put into a permanent place at a psychiatric facility. Cahun attended the University Of Paris, Sorbonne. During this time is when he started her self-portrait photography which was as early as 1912 (which means she was 18) and continued to take photographs of herself through the 1930’s.However, Cahun passed on 8th of December 1954
Many of Cahun’s self-portraits show her with her head shaven and only from the shoulders up eliminating her body which blurs the gender indicators. Which shows that her identity and gender is allowed to be seen, however should not be objectified.
WW2 Activism
Cahun settled in Jersey in 1937, after the fall of France and the German occupation of Jersey and the Channel Islands . Where Cahun became an activist and propagandists and worked producing anti-German fliers. In 1944 Cahun was sentenced to death however it was not carried out as the Island was liberated in 1945, however throughout her time in jail Cahun’s health declined and unfortunately never recovered after being let out and Cahun passed on 8th of December 1954.
Cahun Analysis
This is image is taken using a film camera and the genre of this photography is portraiture.
The mise-en-scene presents the self-portrait photo of Claude Cahun sat on a chair, with a t-shirt that says don’t kiss me, I’m in training, with a black background. The tone of this image is pretty dark, dues to the background and her hair and makeup being dark as well. The use of light in this image is quite softwarm looking lighting, however, it is still artificial light so this may have been taken in her home or where ever she used as a studio. The focus distance is short as it is a close up photo and the depth of field is large as everything is in focus. The leading lines of the images would be the lightness of her white outfit against the dark black background, as well as the black accessories she is wearing also bring your eyes across the image.
I believe the ISO is 100 as everything is in focus and not grainy. I believe that the shutter speed is 1000 as everything is clear.
Claude Cahun states: “The abstraction, the dream, are as limited for me as the concrete and the real” this demonstrates the fact that during the occupation she felt trapped and possibly isolated. As she has big dreams to be creative and free however they were stopped by WW2 and the occupation of Jersey.
What photography movement was Cindy Sherman a key figure of? And what was their purpose?
Cindy Sherman was an important figure in Conceptual Photography, especially in Feminist Art and Postmodernism.
Her work involved taking self-portraits where she dressed up as different characters to explore themes like identity, gender, and how women are shown in media.
Purpose: Sherman’s goal was to challenge the typical ways women are portrayed, like the “femme fatale” or the “damsel in distress.” She showed that these roles are not real, but rather performances influenced by society. Her work made people think about how media shapes our ideas of gender and identity.
What did she do before she became a photographer?
Before becoming a photographer, Cindy Sherman studied art. She initially attended Buffalo State College in New York, where she earned a degree in fine arts with a focus on painting. However, she became increasingly drawn to photography as a medium to express her ideas. While at college, she also experimented with other forms of art, including drawing and film.
Sherman’s shift to photography allowed her to explore concepts of identity, gender, and representation in a new way, eventually leading her to become one of the most influential photographers in contemporary art.
What are the key goals of her photography?
Cindy Sherman’s photography focuses on challenging stereotypical representations of women and exploring the performative nature of gender and identity. Through self-portraits in which she transforms into various characters, she critiques how women are portrayed in media, pop culture, and art, often highlighting the artificial and constructed nature of these roles. By using herself as the subject, Sherman questions the “male gaze” and shifts the control over female representation, urging viewers to reconsider how images shape our understanding of identity and gender. Her work ultimately seeks to provoke thought about how societal expectations influence how we see ourselves and others.
how dose she achieve these goals?
Cindy Sherman achieves her goal by photographing herself in a variety of personas and roles, using costumes, makeup, props, and elaborate set designs to transform her appearance. She doesn’t photograph other people but instead uses herself as the model, allowing her to explore and manipulate different identities. Through these self-portraits, Sherman portrays a wide range of characters, such as the “victim,” “heroine,” “mother,” “old woman,” “sex object,” “movie star,” and various figures drawn from stereotypes in film, advertising, and art. These personas often exaggerate or distort societal expectations of women.
Through this process, Sherman conveys a message about the constructed nature of gender roles and identity. By embodying different characters, she reveals how these roles are not inherent but are shaped by external influences like media and culture. Her work challenges viewers to question how much of their identity is influenced by societal norms and stereotypes, especially in how women are portrayed and objectified in the media. Sherman’s use of transformation and performance in her photography critiques the power of visual imagery in shaping perceptions of gender and identity.
Does Cindy Sherman consider her photos to be self-portraits?
Cindy Sherman does not consider her photos to be traditional self-portraits. While she is the subject of her work, her photos are not about capturing her “true” self or identity. Instead, Sherman uses herself as a medium to explore and critique various personas, stereotypes, and societal roles. Through her transformations, she embodies a wide range of characters, often drawing from cultural and media archetypes like the “victim,” “femme fatale,” or “older woman.”
Her work is more about examining how identity is constructed and how roles are performed rather than portraying herself in a direct or autobiographical way. Sherman’s photographs aim to reveal the artificial nature of these roles, rather than offer an intimate or personal glimpse into her own identity. In this sense, while she is the subject, the focus is on the broader themes of representation, gender, and identity, rather than a self-portrait in the traditional sense.
examples of her work –
Analyst –
visual –
within the photo you can see and women betrayed as a stereotypical women and that’s its in black and white, that’s shows that its been seen in an old mind set. furthermore how she is dressed is quite proper for a young women and also her outfit seems very feminine compared to how people dress now a days. on the face you cant see the facial expression, its very plain and doesn’t show any personality of the person. within this the photo is cute spacious its got only building, which go straight up high, and the subject is positioned in the lower middle and in the frame is the shoulders up.
Technical –
aperture – the background is mostly blurred in the left side and the right is in focus, the subject is fully in focus.
Shutter speed – which could of been quite a fast shutter speed as the subject is in focus, with a balanced exposure
Angle – Has it been taken from a slightly lowered angle, which is to create a sense of power or dominance in the characters she portrays. This challenges traditional depictions of women, who are often shown from higher angles to appear passive. The lower angle also emphasizes that the roles she embodies are not natural, but constructed, reflecting her critique of how society and media shape identity. By shifting the viewer’s perspective, Sherman encourages a more critical engagement with the images, inviting them to question the power dynamics and the meaning behind the characters.
this photo is taken as a head shot, this adds more mystery of to what’s going on below her.
Contextual –
Cindy Sherman’s Untitled Film Stills is a suite of seventy black-and-white photographs in which the artist posed in the guises of various generic female film characters, among them, ingénue, working girl, vamp, and lonely housewife.
Conceptual –
a subtle satire of the feminine. stereotypes plaguing society now and in the past. By confronting viewers with a. familiar image of the ideal 1950s woman, she attempts to have viewers realise their. indoctrination to stereotypes.
another photo analysis –
visual –
within this photo you can see a very lady like subject, also it can be seen that its a hole body which shows the femininity of her outfit, as she is wearing a dress.
technical –
aperture – the backgrounds is out of focus and the foreground (the tree) is very in focus and same with the subject.
Shutter speed – should be relatively fast, ensuring the subject remains sharp and in focus while maintaining a well-balanced exposure.
the angle being taken from straight on creates a sense of direct confrontation or engagement with the viewer. This perspective often emphasizes the subject’s presence, allowing for a more intense or provocative interaction. By using a straightforward, frontal angle, Sherman often challenges traditional representations of identity and the roles people play, highlighting the constructed nature of the persona she’s portraying. This directness can evoke a feeling of discomfort or force the viewer to question their perceptions, as the subject seems to confront them head-on.
Clare Rae is an artist from Melbourne, Australia who makes photographs and moving image works that examine representations of the female body via an exploration of the physical environment. Rae came to see Jersey as part of the Archaise international artist-in-residence programme in 2017. She was researching the Claude Cahun archive .Rae is very inspired by Cahun. She was shooting new photography and film in Jersey, as well as doing workshops.
From her research she produced a new body of work, Entre Nous (between us);Claude Cahun and Clare Rae. That was exhibited at the Centre for Contemporary Photography, Melbourne Australia 22 March – 6 May 2018, and subsequently at CCA Galleries in Jersey, UK, 7–28 September 2018.
This is from her series Standing On Her Own Two Feet.
In her series,Never standing on two feet, Rae considers Cahun’s commitment with the physical and cultural landscapes of Jersey, an aspect of her work that has received not a lot of analysis to date. Rae writes:
Like Cahun’s, my photographs illustrate my body in relation to a place; in these instances sites of coastal geology and Jersey’s Neolithic ritual monuments. I will use a visual dialogue between the body and these environments, and will trial how their photographic histories impact upon contemporary engagements. Cahun used self-portraiture to overthrow the dominance of the male gaze in photographic representation of the female body in the landscape of Jersey .
My practice is invested in the feminist act of self-representation and I draw parallels between my performances of increasing vocabulary of gesture and Cahun’s overtly performative images of the body expressing a multiplicity of identity. In this series, I tease out the interpretations inherent in landscape photography. I will be using gestures and the performing body to contrast and unsettle traditional representations of the female figure in the landscape.
Image Analysis
Visual
In the image there is a large rock covering Rae’s face. I think these rocks are granites, gabbros and diorites, since Jersey is very famous for these rocks and they are the most common rocks as well. One leg is straight which is the left and the right leg is slightly bent to create this pose. In this angle it looks like a skirt is being worn from the waist down. In this image they are holding a rock which my show the connection to family.
Technical
This photo is a half body shot due to her face not being present. In this image there is little to no lighting due to the image being very black and white, so there is no colour present. In the background there is no focus which means the aperture is very large, with a large hole in the middle of the camera and a very shallow depth of field.
Contextual
Some types are connected to rocks and buildings which suggest attachment. I utilise gesture and the performing body to contrast and unsettle traditional representations of the female figure in the landscape. This may suggest rocks are too heavy for women. This was influenced by Claude Cahun.
Conceptual
Through my photographic performances I will research specific gestures and movements undertaken within public and private spaces, considering the impacts on the body by educational and institutional authority. This is linking to Morden day portraits.
Artist Number 2
Claude Cahun
Claude Cahun (born October 25, 1894, Nantes, France—died December 8, 1954, St. Helier, Jersey) was a French writer ,photographer, surrealist and a performance artist. Who was largely written out of art history until the late 1980s, when her photographs were included in an exhibition of Surrealist photography in 1986.
In early-20th-century France, when society were normally considered women to be women and men to be men, Lucy Schwob decided she would rather be called Claude Cahun. It was her way of protesting gender and sexual norms.
One of the most interesting figures to emerge from the island’s artistic community is Claude Cahun, a ground-breaking artist whose work challenged traditional gender roles and explored themes of identity, resistance, and self-expression. Surrealism will aims to revolutionise human experience.
She used self-portraiture as a tool to deconstruct and explore various personas, often presenting herself in androgynous or fragmented forms. Through costumes, makeup, and props, Cahun blurred the lines between masculinity and femininity, demonstrating that identity is not fixed but rather fluid and performative. Her work aimed to provoke viewers to rethink conventional notions of gender and self-expression.
Cahun’s relationship with Jersey began extremely early, with childhood holidays spent in Jersey and Brittany. They were born Lucy Schwob in Nantes, France to a wealthy and well off Jewish family. In 1937, Cahun moved to Jersey with her partner, Marcel Moore. But in their late teens and early twenties Cahun had been looking for a new, gender-neutral name for a while.
A Mood-board of Cahun’s work
Image Analysis
Visual
In the image there may be a man or a woman due to Cahun becoming gender neutral later in life. . In this photograph, Cahun is posed facing to the camera, yet her gaze is directed downward, with her face isn’t obscured by any part of her body. This creates a sense of mystery and ambiguity, which makes the viewer’s ability quite hard to categorize her into a traditional gender role. The obscured face also speaks to Cahun’s exploration of the fluidity of identity, rejecting fixed, conventional representations.
The object Cahun holds in her hands is a dumbbell, was not something a female figure would usually have in the 1920s considering, it was made for men because they are classed as “strong”. A time when women were often portrayed as delicate and gentle. The dumbbell implies strength, power, and physicality, which is in contrast to the more elegant, ornamental role which was often assigned to women. The choice of this object reinforces Cahun’s rejection of gender norms and her embrace of physicality, autonomy, and control over her identity.
Technical
The photograph used artificial lighting, likely studio lighting, given the sharp contrast between light and shadow. The light contours Cahun’s face and hands , which means the viewers eye is getting immediate attention to where the face and hands are positioned.
The background is blurred which will give a shallow depth of field, which suggests that a wide aperture (low f-stop) was being used. This sharp focus on Cahun’s figure, contrasted with the soft and out-of-focus background, which will direct the viewer’s eyes on her and the symbolic elements she presents, such as the dumbbell and the sign.
The image is caught from a straight-on or slightly elevated angle. This neutral and original angle will emphasize the subject’s self rule and implies that Cahun is presenting herself on her own terms, without depending on traditional hierarchical positioning.
The image was taken at a three-quarter body shot, focusing on Cahun’s torso, waist and hands. This framing allows for a accurate examination of the subject and the symbolic elements that will make up the image ,while also depending on the performative nature of Cahun’s self-presentation. The three-quarter shot also will allow for a sense of confidence while keeping the viewer at a slight distance, which keeps the public a certain distance away so thy can’t interfere.
Contextual
She wears a loose, neutral outfit, steering away from the traditional feminine dress of the time. This ambiguity in dress further tests the social expectations of how women were expected to look like in the 1920s.
In the 1920s and 1930s, women had to follow a strict dress presentation. The 1920s, known as the “Roaring Twenties,” saw the rise of the “New Woman,” which were more self-reliant, more mobile in public spaces, and more vocal about particular rights. This period also was a victory of women’s suffrage in many Western countries. However, many social pressures still remained, especially as the Great Depression in the 1930s was a return of the more traditional, conservative gender roles. In this context, Cahun’s work responds to these shifting dynamics, particularly the tensions between newfound freedoms and the persistent constraints on women’s roles.
Conceptual
Cahun’s works on the challenges of the rigid roles that were imposed on women between the 1920s and 1930s, using her art to critique both gender expectations and the broader societal limitations placed on individuals. By adopting an different appearance and rejecting the traditional representations of femininity, Cahun declines the traditional gender expectations in the 1920s-1930s.
The sign on Cahun’s chest, “I am training – don’t kiss me,” serves as a direct acknowledgement of the independence and autonomy. It suggests that Cahun is focused on her personal growth, which suggests this ants really expected from women because it implies using dumbbells in the gym.—whether intellectual, artistic, or physical—and rejects the idea of being defined by romantic or sexual attraction. The phrase “don’t kiss me” further suggests a refusal of being known as an object and a desire to assert control over how others interact with her.
Artist Number 3
Gillian Wearing
Gillian Wearing is a CBE, Who is an English conceptual artist, one of the Young British Artists, and winner of the 1997 Turner Prize. In 2007 Wearing was elected as lifetime member of the Royal Academy of Arts in London (RAAL).She was Born :December 10,1963,which will make her 61yrs.
Wearing was part of a movement where conceptual as very popular. This type is of art is from the mid-1960s to the mid-1970s. Conceptual is where the ideas are more important than the actual image.
Wearing, was initially inspired by fly on the wall documentaries such as Michael Apted’s Up series, which is about lives of others and her own family history; she uses photography, video and a range of devices to reveal and include personal details. Wearing also uses documentaries in her work.
A Gallery of Her Work
These images are from her ‘Signs that Say What You Want Them To Say and Not Signs that Say What Someone Else Wants You To Say’.
Image Analysis
Visual
In this image there is a man holding up a piece of paper saying ‘I’m Desperate’. ‘I’m Desperate’ may imply he may be in danger due to the environment he’s in The environment looks a bit run down due to slight bits of rubbish in the background. The man is standing straight up and straight on which means the man is clearly seen. This man is wearing a suit which suggests he may be rich and wealthy, since suits were expensive back in the 1990s.By wearing a suit may imply a certain amount of power.
Technical
In this image the aperture is a low F-number due to the shallow depth of field and the background has also been blurred by the camera. This photo was taken was taken in all natural lighting because it outside and there no other light sources appearing on it. If you look closely on the photo there may of been a slightly high ISO in some parts of the image due to some visual noise appearing which will give the image a degrading quality. The visual noise slightly appears on the Blue, navy blazer. This is three quarter shot due to the legs not being shown. This image is zoomed in which means you can see the finer details. The three quarter body shot will highlight the facial characteristics while still giving a close view of the body.
Contextual
Lad culture (also the new lad, laddism) was a media-driven, principally British and Irish subculture of the 1990s and the early 2000s and it was the main culture. The statement lad culture continues to be used today to refer to collective, boorish or misogynistic behaviour by young heterosexual men, particularly university students.
By the 1990s the notion of a crisis of masculinity in con temporary life had begun to make news headlines. Concerns were raised about “deadbeat dads” and the increase of the “angry white man” as a voter type.
As the 90s dawned things were looking up for women. Daughters of second-wave feminism came of age and chose new paths unavailable to their mothers: delaying marriage and children, pursuing higher education, joining the workforce, and were assuming independence and identities outside of the home.
Conceptual
It also wasn’t traditional for women to go through to higher education until the late 90s.
It was right for men to wear proper suits and have only men jobs. E.G Builders and many more. Signs that say what you want them to say and not Signs that say what someone else wants you to say. HELP, 1992-1993. Gillian Wearing’s candid videos and photographs reveal the disconnection between inner lives and public personas.
Cindy Sherman is a key figure in the Pictures Generation, an art movement from the late 1970s and early 1980s. This group of artists critiqued how media and popular culture shape ideas about identity, gender, and societal norms. They challenged traditional notions of originality and explored how imagery from advertising, movies, and other media influences perceptions of self and society.
Sherman initially studied painting at Buffalo State College but found it too restrictive for her creative ambitions. This led her to photography, where she discovered more freedom to experiment with themes of identity and representation.
Her photography focuses on exposing societal stereotypes and roles, particularly those imposed on women. By emphasizing the constructed nature of identity, Sherman challenges the idea that identity is fixed or inherent. Her work critiques how media reinforces gender norms and cultural archetypes, drawing on visual references from movies, advertisements, and art history to highlight these dynamics.
Sherman photographs herself exclusively but uses her image to embody various characters rather than explore her own identity. Through costumes, makeup, props, and carefully staged settings, she transforms into housewives, actresses, clowns, historical figures, and exaggerated personas. These transformations critique the roles and stereotypes imposed by society and media, revealing their artificiality and underlying power dynamics.
While she is the subject of her photos, Sherman does not consider them self-portraits. Her intent is not autobiographical but rather to use herself as a tool to investigate broader cultural and societal issues. Her work serves as a platform for exploring themes of representation, identity, and the influence of media.
Image Analysis
Untitled Film Still #14, New York, Museum of Modern Art (1978)
Cindy Sherman adopts the role of a mid-20th-century woman, possibly a housewife or small-town figure. Her modest clothing, hairstyle, and makeup reflect traditional gender roles and evoke a character rooted in a specific cinematic archetype.
The photograph is set indoors, likely in a domestic or urban environment, with subtle details in the background such as walls or furniture that add context. These elements create a sense of intimacy and realism.
Sherman’s character is posed in a moment of stillness, gazing outward with an expression that suggests contemplation or unease. Her posture feels slightly tense, and the overall mood of the image is introspective and subdued.
The subject is framed in a medium shot, which captures part of her body while focusing on her expression and the immediate surroundings. This framing creates a sense of voyeurism and invites the viewer into a private moment, heightening the cinematic atmosphere.
The image suggests an implied narrative, as if the character has been caught during a reflective or routine moment. Sherman’s gaze and expression hint at something happening beyond the frame, adding tension and curiosity for the viewer.
The title, Untitled Film Still #14, is intentionally ambiguous. It evokes the idea of a larger fictional story, allowing viewers to project their own interpretations onto the scene.
The background being in focus suggests a narrower aperture, which ensures that both the subject and the environment are clear and contribute to the overall narrative. The clarity and balanced exposure indicate the use of a fast shutter speed to capture the stillness of the moment.
The photograph is taken from a slightly low angle, placing the viewer just below eye level with the subject. This creates a sense of intimacy and makes the viewer feel as though they are part of the setting. It is a half-body shot, which emphasizes Sherman’s expression and body language while maintaining relevance to the surrounding context. The framing feels balanced between safety and vulnerability, adding subtle tension to the image.
Historically, women in media have been portrayed in stereotypical roles such as housewives, femme fatales, or damsels in distress. These portrayals often objectified women or reduced them to secondary roles defined by their relationships to men. During the mid-20th century, women in film were frequently idealized, with their primary focus placed on domesticity, beauty, and passivity.
Sherman’s Untitled Film Stills were intended to resemble scenes from fictional movies. They mimic cinematic tropes and reference Hollywood and European films to critique how media constructs female identity and reinforces cultural stereotypes.
Sherman’s work highlights how cinema and media perpetuate unrealistic and limiting portrayals of women. By performing as these characters, she exposes these roles as artificial constructs rather than authentic representations of femininity. Her critique remains relevant today, as modern media continues to reinforce gender stereotypes through advertising, social media, and entertainment, reminding viewers to question and challenge the narratives presented to them.
Why did I chose Cindy Sherman as my Inspiration for this project?
I chose Cindy Sherman because her work challenges the way we think about identity and stereotypes in such a powerful and creative way. She’s able to take something as simple as a pose or a setting and turn it into a critique of how society imposes roles on people, especially women. I admire how she uses herself as a tool to explore these themes while making the images feel both familiar and unsettling.
Her focus on exaggerating and deconstructing stereotypes gives me a framework to explore similar ideas in my own work, especially when it comes to highlighting how certain roles, like the “perfect housewife” or the “ideal woman,” are so ingrained in our culture. I feel like her style allows for a lot of creativity and depth while still keeping the images accessible and relatable.
She inspires me to think beyond just creating visually interesting photos and to really question the narratives and expectations that come with the roles I’m portraying. Her work is the perfect combination of storytelling, critique, and artistry, which is exactly what I want to bring into my project.
How I want to convey Identity
In this photoshoot, I want to convey identity as something that is not fixed but rather constructed and influenced by societal expectations. By focusing on women’s stereotypical activities. I aim to highlight how these roles are often assigned to women and presented as “ideal” identities.
I want to show that these roles can feel performative or even restrictive, exposing the gap between how these identities are portrayed and the reality behind them. Small details, like an expression of boredom or frustration, or imperfections in an otherwise polished setting, will help emphasize the tension between the expectation and the individual’s experience.
My goal is to make viewers question how much of identity is shaped by external pressures, like media or cultural norms, and to encourage them to see these roles not as natural or inherent but as constructs that can be challenged and redefined. By staging these scenes with a mix of familiarity and exaggeration, I want the photos to feel reflective of shared experiences while also encouraging deeper thought about the stories we tell ourselves about identity.
