Chameleon artist Cindy Sherman on show in Paris

Black and white films were an early source of inspiration for Cindy Sherman. She started her career with the series "Untitled Film Stills," which was inspired by directors like Hitchcock and Antonioni. Here she portrays herself in fictional film scenes that evoke clichéd female characters of the 1940s and 50s . At the time, her works were still small-format.

The women in her photos seem both familiar and unfamiliar — that's because they are all Sherman in disguise. The artist always portrays herself differently, whether male or female, young or old. Many of her works question femininity and challenge typical gender roles. Her pictures often did not have titles but were numbered, such as this picture from 1992: "Untitled #92."

Sherman has played hundreds of different characters. Working as both the model and photographer, she slips into other identities with ease, be it a jilted lover or an unhappy housewife. Sherman suggests that women always play diverse roles, and that they shift between them according to their needs.

During course of her work, the colors of Sherman's photographs become increasingly garish, as do her motifs. Some photos aggressively critique the image consciousness of women by depicting them deeply tanned or with too much makeup. For her 2004 project "Clowns," Sherman photographed herself wearing various clown masks, wigs and clown costumes against harsh computer-generated backgrounds.

Sherman is interested in showing how the world is shaped by the male gaze, exploring the theme in many of her series' including "History Portraits." Here she stages herself as famous females depicted in historical works of art. In other series such as "Sex Pictures," she shows a darker side of gender relations by portraying violent copulation with mannequin parts.

Cindy Sherman was born in New Jersey, USA in 1954. Her work has been schowcased all over the world, from the Museum of Modern Art in NYC to the Venice Biennale. The Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris presents a retrospective of her work, bringing together 170 pieces from 1975 to 2020. It will run from September 23, 2020 to January 3, 2021.