Cindy Sherman

signed and dated by the photographer in ink on the reverse, matted, framed, 1980, no. 3 in an edition of 10; accompanied by a Metro Pictures edition label

Private Collection, New York

Acquired by Janet Borden, Inc., New York, from the above, 1981

Acquired by the Quillan Company from the above, 1990

Jill Quasha, The Quillan Collection of Nineteenth and Twentieth Century Photographs (New York, 1991), pl. 62 (this print)

Other prints of this image:

Cindy Sherman: Untitled Film Stills (New York, 1990), pl. 36

Amada Cruz, Elizabeth A. T. Smith, and Amelia Jones, Cindy Sherman Retrospective (Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, 1997, in conjunction with the exhibition), pl. 54

Peter Schjeldahl and Lisa Phillips, Cindy Sherman (Whitney Museum of American Art, 1987, in conjunction with the exhibition), pl. 33

Marco Meneguzzo, Cindy Sherman (Padiglione d'Arte Contemporanea di Milano, 1990, in conjunction with the exhibition), p. 29

Betty van Garrel, Verena Lueken, et al., Cindy Sherman (Rotterdam: Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, 1996, in conjunction with the exhibition), pl. 24

This photograph is on double-weight resin-coated paper. It is in excellent condition.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
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The print offered here is an example of Sherman's best-known series, the Untitled Film Stills, taken between 1977 and 1980.  Started shortly after her graduation from the State University College at Buffalo, New York, in 1977, the Untitled Film Stills takes as its starting point the many female stereotypes of popular culture, including those found in B-movies, magazine pin-ups, and film noir.  In format and style, the photographs resemble stills from Hollywood films, or perhaps publicity photographs. Sherman utilizes exaggerated poses and costumes for dramatic effect in her performance of such characters as the blond bombshell, the secretary, the seductress, and the librarian.  Never named or identified, Sherman's heroines are nevertheless vaguely recognizable and therefore invite viewers to construct their own narratives.  The element of performance in Sherman's Film Stills, and the invitation to voyeurism they elicit, have made the work an important touchstone in postmodernism and contemporary art.  Nearly three decades later, the Untitled Film Stills remains Sherman's most significant body of work.