Untitled C 1975

Editor: So, here we have Cindy Sherman's "Untitled C," a photograph from 1975. There's something both innocent and unsettling about it, almost like a lost film still. How do you interpret this work? Curator: It's a fascinating early piece, isn't it? Sherman, even then, was playing with identity. What I find captivating is how she manages to be both present and absent simultaneously. She *is* the subject, but also feels like she's quoting someone else. Think about silent film stars, or perhaps a hesitant ballet dancer waiting in the wings – do you get that sense of performativity? Editor: I do, now that you mention it. It's like she's acting a role but we don’t know which one. Was she exploring similar ideas to her later "Untitled Film Stills" series even back then? Curator: Absolutely, this piece foreshadows much of her later work. This is her dipping her toes, testing the waters. The starkness of the image, the way she’s lit… it’s all deliberate, a questioning of representation. Think about the Pictures Generation movement she was part of – questioning originality and authorship, which, given the subject *is* her, is so intriguing, isn't it? Editor: It really is. It almost feels like a challenge, daring us to define her. I initially saw it as a simple portrait, but now I realize it’s much more complex. Curator: Exactly! It makes you question, what *is* a portrait, anyway? Is it a true reflection, or simply another performance? Perhaps it's both, existing in some ambiguous middle space? Editor: Thanks, that makes a lot more sense now. It's cool to see where such an iconic artist got her start. Curator: And for me, revisiting these early works always illuminates the ongoing dialogue artists have with themselves and with the very idea of art making. A beginning, but already imbued with a distinctive and captivating voice.