When we look at Cui Xuiwen’s digital images, we see some similarities to Cindy Sherman. In Xuiwen’s Angel Series, we see young women who are lonely, isolated, and fearful, as they are in Sherman’s work, though here it is probably due to their being young, alone, and pregnant. Again focusing on their appearances, as modern young women have been taught, they wear bright garish make-up, to emphasize their attributes, and are dressed in a fashionably modern, revealing white dresses. Xuiwen also uses herself, and possibly one other young girl as a model, making many copies of the one girl in her images. As with Cindy Sherman, it seems to me that Xuiwen uses herself not to give insight into her own feelings alone, but to also give voice to the feelings of all women. There is a sense of large, open, outdoor spaces around the figures, again showing their isolation, and their faces are often mask-like, except in one where they look fearful. Like Cindy Sherman’s work the contrasts are sharp, and the colors are bright, and there is a feeling of vulnerability in the poses. The girls also seem trapped both in the situation they find themselves in (pregnant and alone), and the role of a young, modern women. I find it interesting that in most of the portraits where there are many girls together, they seem lonely in a crowd, as if they do not know how to reach out to each other for strength and support. Yet in one portrait alone, they are leaning against each other, as if to support one another, and stand stronger together.
The use of color in Xuiwen’s images suggests contrasts. The inclusion of red in some images brings to mind strong emotion, the blood of childbirth, and the color brides wear for luck in China. Since these girls are young and alone, this contrasts with their status. The red color also seems reserved for traditional architectural elements, which contrasts with their modern dress and situation. The blue sets a calm mood, yet the girls
are not calm, they are exhausted, fearful, and dejected. The white dresses suggest purity and angels, yet the girls are hardly pure or angelic, in their state. And finally, though this presents no contrast, Xuiwen uses red and blue, primary colors, which are used in children’s toys, and to decorate baby’s rooms, which seems very apropos.
There is an element of hope in Xuiwen’s images, that is lacking in Cindy Sherman’s. In Angel #1, the girl is standing in water, under dark clouds, but there are bright white clouds on the horizon, on the way. Furthermore, in a couple of the images, the women are on a roadway or street that they continue to travel though they are frightened of the journey, showing their strength and determination.
