It comes as a surprise to some people that Andy Warhol was a gay man. Still, though he is best known for his pop art, such as ‘Campbell’s Soup Cans’ (1962), his works expressing his gay identity, like ‘Self-Portrait in Drag’ (1980) and ‘Sleep’ (1963) were nevertheless a statement in a time when homosexuality was criminalized. Artist Cindy Sherman credits Warhol as one of her influences; although her sexual identity does not shape her artistry, her art too acts as social commentary (Briar), trailblazing paths and setting examples for those of similar ideologies. The messages conveyed in Sherman’s artwork and efforts in activism challenge the norm and influence other creators.
When most people think of art, they think of aesthetic beauty, like shapes that mesh, or impressive examples of realism, or art that leaves the viewer feeling impressed. Postmodernism challenges this expectation head-on: practitioners of the postmodernist movement, such as Cindy Sherman, share the belief that art, tradition be damned, ought to exist as a form of expression and inspiration to change minds and teach lessons. The movement snubs the idea of beauty as priority, and prioritizes bold, thought-provoking motifs and never-before-done artistic decisions (Mulvey).
Cindy Sherman’s Instagram posts are a wonderful example of how she adopts postmodernist concepts into her art. Since creating an Instagram account in 2017, she’s used the platform’s tools to explore the social construct that is ‘Instagram Perfection’: an angelic face and hourglass figure. By taking airbrushing and reshaping her selfies to the social media standard to the extreme, Sherman highlights the differences between inhuman perfection and inhuman monstrosity (Rockefeller). She raises the question: When does exaggerated perfection become alien? With the world becoming desensitized to issues like rises in plastic surgery and Photoshop on the regular, Sherman depicts how our imperfections make us human. This instance of Sherman confronting very real beauty standards is just one occurrence of her creating art which tackles social issues through monstrosity and works of the grotesque. Though messages and ideas are so often transferred through works of art like artwork, music, or film, Sherman confronts ideas that are considered the standard, like women’s worth or sex appeal being reflected in their youth, encouraging her viewers to think more deeply about concepts they’ve become accustomed to and to challenge ideas so prevalent in their lives. This advocacy against current, human biases and customs shapes Sherman as both an artist and activist, but her advocacy transfers outside of her artwork as well.
Scrolling through Sherman’s Instagram page, it’s easy to be distracted by the images of uncannily reconstructed faces, but her Instagram too acts as grounds for her advocacy. Her activism and support of marginalized groups take form in funds to support struggling artists through the pandemic; online petitions and links to articles about and for the Black Lives Matter movement; Instagram Story rants about abortion rights. She manages to use her 372,000 followers and verified status to educate enormous groups of people, remaining conscious of her immense success by fighting the sexual harassment, sexualization, and objectification of women in Hollywood, condemning violations of women’s rights in Iran, and auctioning off art in support of the queer, disabled, and colored communities (Mulvey). Sherman, though allotted the option to revel in fame and success, chose to take advantage of her social megaphone to speak out in support of others and give back. Still, despite Sherman’s efforts to use the scope of her success as tools to advocate for honorable causes, she’s faced plenty of criticism.
Sherman adopting the concept of postmodernism into her work has acted as a driving force in encouraging discourse and free expression within the art world, but has also garnered criticism from critics in past and modern times. In previous decades, her work had been often condemned by working men and housewives deeming her work unladylike and improper, especially in discussion of themes like sexuality and feminism within her work (Rockefeller). Nevertheless, Sherman’s work has acted as an inspiration for a number of artists within the entertainment industry, in her medium and in her progressive ideals.
‘NXDE’ is a Korean-pop song performed and written by Korean girl group (G)-IDLE. “I’m born nude, and you’re the pervert,” the girls sing. ‘NXDE’ is a song about the sexualization of female idols, or members of Korean-pop groups, and the expectation for beautiful women to be airheads and for feminists to be man-haters. Though completely different from Cindy Sherman’s work in substance, ‘NXDE’ reflects many of the themes seen in Sherman’s work. Credited as ‘the original feminist photo artist’ (Tomkin), Sherman pioneered within the art industry by speaking out about violations of rights with her art, and revolutionized concepts of gender, the sexualization of women, and femininity as a social construct. In some ways, parts of the feminist movement sparked within interpretations of Sherman’s art, and this lit the match that culminated in a brilliant firework sequence that is the modern-day fight for equal rights. So, though ‘NXDE’ may not have been directly inspired by Cindy Sherman, considering the disparities in nationality and artistry, a movement with Sherman at the center of it, the initial marble in a long-winded Rube Goldberg machine, nevertheless influenced the creation of ‘NXDE’ greatly. Sherman touches the art and hearts of those all around the globe thanks to her beliefs and her challenging societal expectations.
Not only have Cindy Sherman’s works added to her efforts in advocacy along with her other charitable ventures, but her art has also inspired other artists in a number of industries, in sometimes intangible ways. The legacy she’s left by popularizing postmodernism, monstrosity in art, speaking out about controversies in her art, and using her platform for the better can be seen everywhere, even in the most unexpected ways. Viewers of her work can agree that the depth and artistic genius of her work is astounding, and it translates within her message, beliefs, and movement.