Cindy Sherman (born 1954) used photography to challenge images in popular culture and the mass media. Her work concentrated on examining the way women are viewed by society. She used herself as a model in the 1977-1980 series of 69 black-and-white photographs called "Untitled Film Stills." Sherman's later series included themes of pornography, Old Master paintings, and fairy tales, as well as dismembered medical dummies in graphic poses.

Cynthia Morris Sherman was born in Glen Ridge, New Jersey, on January 19, 1954 and was raised in suburban Long Island, New York. Her father's hobby was collecting cameras and taking family photos. As a child Sherman spent a lot of time playing dress-up, an activity that she later used in her work. In 1972, Sherman enrolled at the State University College at Buffalo, New York, as an art education major, where she began studying painting. Sherman painted self-portraits and realistic images she found in...