Views: Cindy Sherman in National Portrait Gallery London

London has one major advantage over other cities in UK. It attracts BIG names like no other place. When I saw Sherman’s exhibition advert, it took me few seconds to make up my mind. I had to see it live. Arranged all the travel and in no-time we were boarding LNER train down South. We were right on time – it was 14th Sept, a day before the display was due to close down.

First things first. I had received some formal photography education in my life, so Sherman’s profile wasn’t anonymous to me. We’ve actually studied some of her works extensively, and when asked – the first thing that came to my mind was the Untitled Film Stills series with its most famous piece: Untitled 96.

My pre-reads

It could be due to my background in arts, but if I know the artist I tend to skip reviews and in-depth exhibition literature until I see everything myself. I would only glance the programme to have a general idea about the body of work on display. I would also refer to it afterwards to verify my thoughts or seek other perspectives. But all I really need is to immerse into the works, letting curator’s choice and taste guide me.

Things I love in well-designed retrospective displays

Although I knew the most famous works by heart, I’ve still discovered few gems. Side note: there are 2 main approaches to presenting a comprehensive artist’s profile. One is to focus purely on the body of artistic work, and the other is to augment it by unveiling the creative process behind – via personal notes, studio snaps, sketches or out-takes. The latter approach is my preferred as it offers a tremendous educational value. And that was the design of Sherman’s exhibition too.

I always find these journeys through one’s creative practice, reasoning and often personal circumstances to be inspiring. Seeing an artwork alone doesn’t offer such depth of understanding and connection. So I left the gallery with a satisfying sense of completeness – they managed to portray the artist and her work as a whole. I loved both the early uni works as well as the later commercial assignments. Delighted to see how artist’s unique style can enrich advertising and editorial domains, which could otherwise fall into commercial mediocrity. Of course, the experience of seeing the Untitled 96 was a thing on its own.

Talking about art pieces

Again, the National Portrait Gallery did something right. Certainly, you can exhibit the best piece of art in the most prominent place – but this won’t work for every exhibition, especially a retrospective. It’s much better if you see that woven into the exhibition experience. The room which hosted the Untitled 96 was exemplary. It was secluded and lit perfectly for the type of art. Somehow, I had a sense of suspended time there. It was inviting to contemplate not only the nuances of photographic mastery, but also deeper humanistic meaning beyond the visual sense. These works talked about feminism, but on a different level than you’d see anywhere around – it was pure humanism, without the cliched feminine vs masculine narratives that dominate discussions these days.

Lastly, experiencing some of the prints as a ceiling-high enlargements was a real pleasure. As the old photographers’ saying goes – if you want to improve a photograph, make it bigger. If you still need to make it better, add a decent frame. Now, the best of the best happens when you see a great photograph, blown-up to a remarkable size, and finally – really well presented. Again, that was the case here. Well done.