Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Proto Cindy Sherman



Those of you from the City of Big Shoulders are likely already very familiar with Outsider Artist Lee Godie's unique oeuvre, but we just recently came across it, and had to share. While the resonances with Cindy Sherman are quite pronounced, Godie's technique was worlds away from that of Sherman. Lacking both a camera and a home, the itinerant artist relied throughout the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s on a photo booth at a Chicago Greyhound bus station to make her absurdist self-portraits, and frequently worked upon their surface with ink pens to apply color and other flourishes. And unlike Sherman, whose youth and privilege can be read on the conventionally attractive body that she distorts for many of her portraits, Godie's especially sun-damaged skin bespeaks a certain mystery that no amount of postmodern play or dime-store makeup can negate.

What wonderful stories one can tell with some pocket change.

4 comments:

Melissa Righero said...

That's outstanding. Very impressive with her resources.

alexkeller said...

I remember studying some of Sherman's work and this woman is fantastic - I love the first one - magnifique!

Amanda / Rust Belt Threads said...

wow these are awesome.

wheelchairs said...

Superb blog post, I have book marked this internet site so ideally I’ll see much more on this subject in the foreseeable future!