Façade
2019, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Some of my reflective thoughts (before you read the concept of the series):
“Looking back at the period of creating these works, I believed a lot of what the media wrote about these topics. It created a pessimistic view of society. As I unconsciously gave it a lot of attention, my fear grew and I continued to attract things that confirmed these beliefs. Since the ego is always looking for validation for what if beliefs. I was creating a negative reality in my mind. Through which glasses did I see life? Did I choose fear or love?”
Façade reflects my resistance towards humanity separating from physical nature. I focus on the negative aspects of technological development and social media and project my fear into the future.
The research is focused on addiction and its consequences. Social media often gives people an unrealistic view of others’ reality and this can cause them to measure themselves with others. Which brings unhappiness and longing for something different than the present moment. I see the struggle of young people trying to be or become something that is far from their true being.
The self-portrait is an invitation to discover your self-image. Whether you’re satisfied with yourself, or whether there’s a subconscious desire to change yourself. I enjoy everybody’s unique being and identity. We came here to express ourselves in an authentic way. It is so powerful to be yourself. Regardless of what others think about that.
The image on the escalator is based on research i did. There's a social credit system in China which keeps control of citizens behavior by constant super vision. I was inspired by the Netflix series Black Mirror, which covers a lot of scenarios that may occur in the future.
It's also based on the world we live in now. If you look around, people are almost glued to their phones and react with each other less and less. Everybody seems to have the perfect lives if you look at their social media accounts.
Technology and social media have many positive sides too. They make life easier and allow us to connect in new ways. We find like-minded people and feel at home in online communities. Technology is a valuable addition to daily life. But as long as we can’t take responsibility, we remain a slave to our device. Until the moment we become aware, we can decide to use it consciously. In a way that serves us.
The deeper message of this series is to make the viewer more aware. Hold up a mirror by magnifying the possible consequences. Hoping people will connect deeper with each other, regardless of their phone. That everyone understands how unique he or she is and that their qualities may be embraces. As long as we imitate others, we won’t be able to connect with that which we really are.