Taking a Look at Frida Khalo and Cindy Sherman

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Throughout history art has played a major role in society. It started out with paintings and went to photography and eventually to films. Artistic interpretation depended on whom the artist was and what he or she wanted to present to the audience. When it came to portraiture, whether it was paintings or photography, the idea of mimesis was very important. However important this may have been, the portraits were mostly products of the media and fashions during that time period. Whatever was popular during the time was used such as columns or curtains in the background. The face was the main focus in the painting and there was little focus on the body. Later on during photography the body was focused on more. Even though photography was used much later after paintings were used, it allowed the artist even more artistic interpretation because of the ability to play a different role and not having to be ones self. The artists that will be focused on are Frida Kahlo and Cindy Sherman. They lived during different periods and their artistic intentions varied because of that. They also had similarities in that they thought outside of the conventional roles. These women were both self-portraiture artists and although they were considered that their interpretations did not always make their portraits self-portraits. Traditionally the artist was an outsider, but when it came to self-portraiture they became the subject and the audience became the outsider. The similarities and differences of Frida Kahlo and Cindy Sherman’s art were tied into the strength and also vulnerability they had because of their roles as women. They wanted the audience to see a background story to the portraits and not just an image of a beautiful face.
Both Frida Kah...

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..., but the lives of other women in the movies for example. It was not Cindy and therefore was not real life. It was a sense of reality without being real and so it made it fictional. Cindy used her American identity to show her values in the cinematic part of society and Frida used her Mexican identity to influence her works.
Cindy Sherman and Frida Kahlo were pioneers when it came to artistic creativity and relating to femininity. Without these two female self-portraiture artists, art wouldn’t be what it is today. They had definite differences when it came to their style, but in the end when it came to the purpose they both wanted to use stylistic conventions during their time and they also wanted to change those conventions. Whether it was the background or the character portrayed they have their own defined style and that makes these two women memorable artists.

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