Stereotyping / Identity

The theme of identity is one that we as human beings are consistently confronted with on a daily basis and it is this reason, the fact that it is something that we have all encountered and have personal experience with, that it is so commonly addressed within the art world whether it be through the painting medium or photography. Identity is an extremely broad subject, one of which I have addressed in different ways throughout my photographic practice over the years. During my research for this assignment I have come across many different photographers who also address this theme in their work, two are Cindy Sherman (b.1954) and John Stezaker (b.1949). Within this essay I give a brief explanation of the psychology behind identity, more specifically first impressions and stereotypes, as written by British psychologist Donald C. Pennington in his book Social Cognition (2000). I also discuss the main artists I have used as inspiration for this assignment and the specific aspects of their work that has had the most influence in creating this body of work.

In my opinion it is impossible to imagine human society in a world without knowledge of who others are and without a sense of who we are as individuals. I also think that questioning, developing, struggling with or trying to stay comfortable within an individual identity, is quite possibly an internal battle everyone goes through each day. Society is asked to speak, dress, walk and act in specific ways in order to be accepted and sometimes just to be acknowledged and because of this we are constantly under scrutiny by peers, strangers and the media. When meeting a stranger for the first time, one of the first things we do is attempt to identify them (Zerubavel as cited in Jenkins, 2004, p. 6). The information relied upon to make this identification includes the clothes worn and language spoken by this stranger, as well as information from third parties (2004, p. 6). This often leads to a negative or false first impression being established due to the opinion consisting of points of view from two different parties. This first piece of information received, or the first opinion formed about another person, has greater effect on the overall opinion of that person rather than new, and possibly more truthful information that is received at a later date (Pennington, 2000, p. 77). This is often how false first impressions arise and how the stereotyping of individuals usually comes about. We as a society, try and work out all that is possible about a stranger just by looking at them but at the same time, try to present ourselves in such a way so that others will see us in a way that we want them to. Identity is constantly talked about; whether it be through compliments, talking about outfits, talking about other people; how these people dress, where they work and who they are friends with. Identity is most likely one of the most talked about topics of conversation in the world, even if the word ‘identity’ is not always used (Jenkins, 2004, p. 6). It is human nature to have an opinion, but the scrutinising of someone else’s identity along with being scrutinised ourselves, is something that is in my opinion, quite often inescapable. This application of opinions and ideas that are used to create a description of someone’s identity is often where false and negative first impressions, as well as stereotyping arise.

The term ‘stereotype’ is linked with social perception when dealing with social psychology (Pennington, 2000, p. 62). Social perception emphasizes the importance of first impressions, whether they are made purely from our own opinion or that of others and can be loosely defined as “the process through which we seek to know and understand other persons” (Baron & Byrne as cited in Pennington, 2000, p. 62). This process of trying to achieve an understanding of an individual’s identity involves a concept called ‘schema’ (Bartlett, 1932, p. 208). Within this concept are sub-concepts, one of which is the social schema. Social schemas are structured collections of information gathered from past experiences that are then stored in the mind’s memory banks for later recall (Pennington, 2000, p. 87). They provide a simple overview of information about the social world and aid the mind in easily categorising new information rather than having to fill a blank slate every time a different social situation is encountered (2000, p. 69). Schemas allow the processing of information about different social scenarios to occur quickly and easily as well as have influence over which information is remembered about specific social situations at any one time (p. 70). However, the information gathered about one social group may have a high chance of differing from the next. This information is used, as well as information from previous similar encounters to form an identity and understanding of this second group, which in turn could result in the identification of this group being false. An understanding of an individual is achieved in this way also. A limited amount of information is usually used which could result in unique characteristics being ignored, and the assumption that the person holds personality traits of a generalized member of society, being made.

The issue of stereotyping is one that is quite commonly addressed within the contemporary art world and more often than not, this issue refers more directly to feminism and/or racism. Although my work refers to neither of these issues and deals with the more generalized identity of society, I have found that artists that address these issues have been extremely helpful both contextually and aesthetically when researching information for this topic. One that has been particular helpful is American photographer Cindy Sherman. Sherman is one of the most influential artists of the past twenty-five years who deals with the issue of identity and feminism, so influential that she is now classed, not as a photographer but an artist as her work has merged into the category of contemporary art (Schroeder, 2002, p. 57.). Sherman is most famous for her series of Untitled Film Stills, 1979-1980 (Childs, 2006, pp. 87 & 91). The series consists of sixty-nine black and white photographs, all of which the artist herself is the main and almost always, the only subject within the frame. Within each photograph Sherman takes on the identity of an imaginary character that resembles a woman who would have featured in a 1950s film noir or B movie (2006, p. 87). Each character is defined by the roles and stereotypes women are placed into within society and “explore the ways in which women are represented in popular culture” (p. 87).

The vast array of stereotypical identities occupying this series of images ranges from the film star to the housewife, the young starlet to the lost adolescent. The photograph called Untitled Film Still #35, (1979) sees Sherman clothed in a short sleeved dress and a pinafore that could suggest that she is portraying a maid working in an upper-class household. However her surroundings, an old, slightly run-down looking door, may tell the viewer otherwise.

Cindy Sherman, 1979. Untitled film still #35  [silver-gelatin print]. The Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY.

Due to this small detail it could be assumed that this is in fact her own house and that she is perhaps a hard-working, doting housewife. Her stance, leaning on one leg, hand on her hip and glancing over her shoulder, gives the impression that the viewer is in her territory but also that there is someone else positioned behind the camera, as her gaze is resting a little above, and to the right of where the camera lens would be situated. This gaze does not look friendly and it seems as though she is not happy that this person is in her home. The woman’s stance, although suggesting that it is her space the viewer is intruding on, also seems as though she has been interrupted or caught out, as though this unfriendly look on her face was not meant to be seen by others. When piecing together the narrative for this photograph, the presence of the coat and scarf in the left section of the photograph, together with the stance and facial expression of the woman, could suggest that the look she is casting across the room is directed at a masculine figure that has possibly demanded that she hang these items of his clothing up while he carry on relaxing after a stressful day at work. The overall identity that could be brought to light using this image is that the woman present is a lower-class housewife. She seems to be a doting wife to her demanding husband, but also despises him due to his demanding ways. The subtle detail of the woman’s polished shoes gives the impression that she is proud of herself and her home, no matter what her social class may be.

Cindy Sherman, 1978. Untitled film still #13  [silver-gelatin print]. The Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY.

Cindy Sherman, 1979. Untitled film still #48  [silver-gelatin print]. The Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY.

This, along with other film stills such as Untitled Film Still #13, (Sherman, 1978) and Untitled Film Still #48, (Sherman, 1979) are perfect examples of how the identity of an individual is able to be established even when the smallest amount of information is available. It is this aspect of Sherman’s work that I am incredibly interested in and have brought into my own studio practice this year. Although I do not feature in my images nor do my subjects disguise their identity using costume, I have carried the idea of establishing an identity with limited information into my work by digitally removing the subject’s face, leaving only their clothes and silhouetted face for the viewer to gather information from. The nameless subjects featuring throughout Sherman’s complete series of Untitled Film Stills are given identities based purely on their clothing, surroundings and facial expressions at the moment the photograph is taken, therefore becoming whatever the viewer deems them to be (Childs, 2006, p. 89). This identity is not constructed by their unique personality traits and mannerisms, only by these generalized and limited details.

British born artist John Stezaker is an artist I have recently discovered who has been incredibly helpful when researching information to aid in developing my body of work. Although he is not an artist who deals directly with the issue of identity, the aesthetic qualities and concepts are something that will have great influence over my work in the very near future. Stezaker is a conceptual artist who fits into the category of surrealism, and has been a central influence in a number of developments and movements within the art world over the past thirty years, including Conceptual Art and New Image Art, right through to contemporary collage (Wilson, 2009, p. 235). This interest in the conceptual and aesthetic aspects of collage has merged with the long-term fascination he has with ‘the image’ and has resulted in “finding new aesthetic allegiances with the image through working with found photographs and printed matter” (Giolla Leith, 2008). As his work particularly concentrates on the portrait, using found photographs generally consisting of salvaged film stills and studio publicity shots from the 1950s (Darwent, 2011). Using these images, Stezaker manually cuts and pastes to create completely new images that toy with our subconscious and dabble in the surreal, even if it is achieved only through cutting portraits down the middle and pairing them with another (Stills, 2007). It is this straightforward technique, which enables the concept and the visual aspects of his work to be so strong (Wilson, 2009).

One such strong series of works, in which Stezaker came to master the process of selection and representation (Wilson, 2009), consists of several images under the name ‘Marriage’; Marriage IV (2006), Marriage VIII (2006) etc. The series concentrates particularly on the portrait and plays with the fascination human society has with the face (Still, 2007). This combined with Stezaker’s interest in the concept of the image, has lead to him deleting and altering different aspects of images, resulting both in visual harmonies and juxtapositions occurring within one work (Giolla Leith, 2007).

John Stezaker, 2006. Marriage VIII  [collage]. Saatchi Gallery, London.

The image titled, Marriage VIII consists of two photographs from the 1950s, both black and white studio publicity shots, one seems to always be a man and the other always seems to be a woman. One photograph, in this case, the image of the man is cut diagonally across through the middle of the face and stuck on top of the portrait of the woman. For most of the images in the series, Stezaker leaves the edges of each portrait in tact, not trimming either image in an attempt to blend the two together and structurally make them seem as one (Wilson, 2009). This decision adds to the uncanny nature of his images as it makes it all the more obvious that something has been changed. However, the way in which Stezaker positions these photographs when they are stuck together, makes them seem like the portrait is in fact of one person. They are positioned so that the main features of each subject line up completely thus merging the two portraits into one. The viewer is quite possibly left with a sense of unease because of this; the man can too easily be seen as beautiful and feminine, while the woman seems strong and masculine, therefore blurring the line that divides their own identity and to an extent, their gender.

In conclusion, although the visual aspects of the work produced by the two artists mentioned in this essay vastly differ, the theme of identity is also so vast that it makes it possible for both Cindy Sherman and John Stezaker to be highly influential towards the same body of work. The instantaneous first impressions and stereotypes brought to light through one glance at the women who feature in Sherman’s Untitled Film Stills, is something that occurs everyday in society and I have been interested in this idea for a long time when dealing with my photography. The manual way in which Stezaker constructs new images by using two different photographs and blurring the identity between two subjects is a technique that I have recently become extremely interested in. Overall, I have found the ideas and visual concepts behind these artists’ work to be extremely helpful and influential towards creating and researching information for the body of work I am working on this year.

References

Bartlett, F. C. (1932). Remembering: a study in experimental and social psychology. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.

Childs, P. (2006). Contemporary cultural texts and critical approaches. Edinburgh, Scotland: Edinburgh University Press.

Darwent, C. (2011). John Stezaker. London, England: Independent UK.

Giolla Leith, C. M. (2008). Masks. London, England: Ridinghouse.

Giolla Leith, C. M. (2007). Marriage. London, England: Ridinghouse.

Jenkins, R. (2004). Social identity. London, England: Routledge.

Pennington, D. C. (2000). Social cognition. London, England: Routledge.

Schroeder, J. E. (2002). Visual consumption. London, England: Routledge.

Sherman, C. (1978). Untitled film still #13 [Photograph] Retrieved from http://masters-of photography.com.

Sherman, C. (1979). Untitled film still #35 [Photograph] Retrieved from http://masters-of-photography.com.

Sherman, C. (1979). Untitled film still #48 [Photograph] Retrieved from http://masters-of-photography.com.

Stills. (2007). John Stezaker. Retrieved from http://www.stills.org/exhibition/past/john-stezaker

Stezaker, J. (2006). Marriage IV [Photograph] Retrieved from http://www.saatchi-gallery.co.uk.

Stezaker, J. (2006). Marriage VIII [Photograph] Retrieved from http://www.saatchi-gallery.co.uk.

Wilson, M. (2009). John Stezaker: Friedrich Petzel Gallery. Art Forum International, 47, 9.