The woven gaze
Material: Cotton and linen
The external is a major focus in society and constitutes a central part of a person’s identity. Through makeup, filters on social media and cosmetic surgeries one’s appearance can always be altered and improved. In her book Inne i spegelsalen, Liv Strömquist (2021) discusses how social media is structured in a way that turns everything into a consumable performance, showcasing certain aspects while concealing others.
I am interested in how the selfie culture has influenced the way we perceive ourselves. Is it possible to refrain from valuing our appearance and thus remain neutral? There is a tension between how we see ourselves from our own perspective compared to someone else’s. When I see a photograph taken of me from a new angle, it creates a clash that leads to feelings of discomfort and thoughts like “who is that?”.
By handweaving on a digital jacquard loom, I have examined the different images we have of ourselves. The woven gaze consists of selfies in two layers, where the front one is edited with an enhancing filter, and the back one is a so-called involuntary selfie, created when the camera on the phone froze a fleeting moment. This means that it is unconscious, unlike the front image where I am posing. The embellished selfie has been deconstructed to reveal an image that may be a bit closer to the truth than the facade we often present to the world.
jojjo.e@hotmail.com
