Cindy Sherman Women

This essay will discuss the opinions that revolve around woman during the late 1960s, where women found their freedom to enter the workforce and delayed having children. In the early 1960s, women were expected to be wives and only to look after their children. It was the time of blonde bombshells and stepford housewives. The only jobs that were available outside the home were teachers, secretaries and nurses. Society believed that a woman’s endeavour was to find a husband, marry young and raise a family. This perception of desire and disgust was solely controlled by the social narrative in which the male ego has been at the forefront. Cindy Sherman’s photography combines both the desire and disgust of a woman in society. Sherman’s work allows the female voice to shine through by subtly exposing the frustration of women that’s been thrust upon them by the media.

Sherman’s Untitled #122 illustrates represents the struggle that a women faced during the 1960s. The stereotypical image of a traditional woman was questioned and a woman’s ability to become more than just a housewife was only being recognised. Soon after the Civil Rights Act of 1964,

Sherman cleverly photographs the figure in a platinum blonde wig (a portrayal of the desired male gaze), wearing a working suit (the disgust of women being in the workforce). In Sherman’s documentary, ‘Nobody is here but me’ (1994) she illiterates that every woman from her past was a role model, however, their role was inherently negative. Sherman’s frustration of what was expected of her when she was young was in becoming an “idealised platinum blonde woman.” She was constantly reminded by these sexualised versions of Hollywood actresses such as Marilyn Monroe and famous fashion