Abstract
The selfie generation is a term commonly used to describe people born after 1981 because of the supposed proliferation of selfies they take daily. If Selfies indeed define a generation of people, then they require close consideration as an evolution of social interaction. This interdisciplinary study focuses on photography as performance of looking involving social relationships between people. I ask “How might selfies suggest a transformation of everyday social relationships?” The selfie as active photographic performance is first examined through illustrative ethnographic observation. Then as performative photographic object the selfie is examined as interactive (Kress & Van Leeuwen’s, 2006, 2009) visual communication. Finally, the performative spaces of the selfie in process (from initial performance, to object and as it is shared and moves between private and public spaces) is examined as relationships of proxemic perception (Hall, 1966). For the selfie generation the private spaces in social relationships has perhaps evolved not simply because of changes in photographic technology, but also new spaces of socialising where private and public contexts are often blurred and unfixed.
Highlights
What might the performative spaces of selfies suggest about a transformation of visual social relationships for the selfie generation and all those who practice and share selfies? Selfies are highly influential, so much so that the practice is often used to identify a generation, suggesting that it has changed the ways we traditionally think about visual communication
Fiona Andreallo x The selfie generation: a transformation of visual social relationships straight at the viewer is described by Kress and van Leeuwen (2006) as performing a look of demand that actively engages with the viewer
The selfie generation, and all those who take and share selfies enjoy a transformation of visual cultural spaces
Summary
Este estudo interdisciplinar centra-se na fotografia como desempenho de olhar envolvendo as relações sociais entre as pessoas. A selfie como performance fotográfica ativa é examinada pela observação etnográfica ilustrativa. Como objeto fotográfico performático, a selfie é examinada como comunicação visual interativa (Kress & Van Leeuwen, 2006; 2009). Finalmente, os espaços performativos da selfie em processo (da performance inicial, ao objeto e como é partilhado e se move entre espaços privados e públicos) são examinados como relações de perceção proxémica (Hall, 1966). Os espaços privados nas relações sociais talvez tenham evoluído não apenas por causa de mudanças na tecnologia fotográfica, mas também por novos espaços de socialização, nos quais os contextos público e privado são muitas vezes indistintos e não fixados. Palavras-chave: visual; espaço; performance; proximidade; intimidade, fotografia, comunicação visual, tecnologia móvel
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