Selfie: Us and Them

In today’s society, technology has managed to find a way to become a part of our personal life. Digital technology plays an important role for many; whether it is used for research or for social reasons. Cell phones have become a multipurpose tool that has changed the way society communicates. Verbal communication has decreased while digital communication is highly increasing. Some of our identity is now published online through a series of images, some of these images are referred to as selfies. These “selfies” alter the identity of the one being photographed, by creating this image they chose how they want to be represented. Throughout history, photography and self-portraits have played a role in the art world. There have been a few artists who only focused on creating self-portraits, but today there are also artists that have found a way to change the meaning of what a “selfie” can be.

In an exhibition by Wonder Women X, titled “Selfie: Us and Them”, the audience is exposed to a few art pieces that demonstrate the similar theme of what a “selfie” means to the artist and how they represent their relationship to themselves. The artist that were exhibited all provided interesting and meaningful pieces. These artists are Lulu Cipher, Hao Feng, Stephanie Quispilaya, Mediha Sandhu, Jennifer Torres, Milcah Bassel, and Meredith Goncalves. Each of these artists presented unique pieces that were different from each other but still managed to fit within the theme. Although the show is titled using the word “selfie”, the traditional selfie was nowhere to be found. They all address the selfie by showing their identity in a nonobvious way. Instead of exhibiting self-portraits that they took themselves they use other types of media other than still images. The pieces shown range from sculpture to video. With these individual pieces, each artist tells a story or describes what identity is to them.

While visiting the exhibition, I noticed that each of these artists critique the meaning and perception of what the selfie is and how identity is expressed. They go against the traditional selfie and create a new form of selfie that still plays a similar purpose. There were many pieces that caught my eye while thinking about the theme, but there were two that really made me think.

One of these pieces was “i.am.meme” by artist Meredith Goncalves. This was the first piece I noticed while entering the exhibition, because of its presentation. Goncalves’ piece included 8 12x12 canvases that resembled a well-known meme. The piece itself was a mixed media piece that was made of photographs, acrylic paint, and wood. With all of these materials, Goncalves managed to challenge the idea of a meme and a selfie by creating somewhat of a narrative. Each piece in this series tells the audience something about the artist through text that was used to describe herself or her family. Although she paints the canvases to resemble the digital form of the meme, she includes pictures of herself to relate it back to the idea of the selfie. Her use of the text and school pictures showing her through the years makes it clear how her identity to others is what is being displayed to the audience. One piece that tells her own perspective of herself says, “PREGNANT, WITH ANOTHER MAN’S BABY”. She also provides a piece that was said by her mother that says, “LAST HOPE, FOR A BOY”. Each of these sayings works to form her identity and role in society. Overall her choice of the text reveals the issues she has with herself and with how others perceive her. I think that this piece is special because it manages to be a form of activism in its meaning. With this project, she could be going against the idea of labeling who you are based on how others judge you. Goncalves’ piece could also work as a form of social activism by changing the idea of what a selfie is itself. She uses real portraits to represent herself in a way someone else wouldn’t want to. She goes beyond the idea of just making it about her identity by making herself a meme.

The other piece that caught my attention and made think was the piece titled “Aesthetics of Anguish” by artist Jennifer Marie Torres. This piece was displayed as a life-casting of the upper half of the female body placed in front of a mirror. With this piece, Torres focuses on how the human body is depicted in society. She describes the human body as a vessel that we often tend to modify just to please others even if it doesn’t satisfy ourselves. At a first glance, it was somewhat challenging to tie it into another theme that was not about identity. I think the use of the mirror helps the audience understand that it’s about how one views themselves. The life-casting is shown positioning her body as if she were trying to find a comfortable pose. I think that the pose of the sculpture represents the difficulty and awkwardness one might feel about their body when it doesn’t meet society’s needs. The mirror also works to allow the audience to view themselves and see how they feel about how they look compared to society’s standards. I also believe that this piece can work as a form of activism because it challenges the idea of what a perfect body might be to society. It brings awareness to accepting how one sees themselves because that is how one’s true identity is formed.

Overall, I really enjoyed this exhibition. All the pieces were interesting to look at and to read about. After looking at how these artists view identities and the selfie, I could come up with my own ideas. I also believe that speaking about identity and how we perceive ourselves could play a big role in any act of activism since it is a powerful topic.