Creation
We are the Instagram generation
On Instagram alone, there are 200 million monthly users, with 60 million photos being taken daily. In the past, photos were a hassle to take and are primarily personal entities. Today, a phenomenon has emerged where people are constantly creating and viewing an onslaught of photographs on social media platforms, such as Instagram.
Panopticism is evident even on Instagram, where people feel like they are constantly being judged by their Instagram feeds. There is pressure to upload prefect looking pictures and share only the best parts of their lives. The problem arises when people become obsessed and are excessively caught up in the contest for ‘likes’ and ‘followers’.
Our initial concept pitch proposed to explore 2 different effects on Instagram — self-worth and not living in the moment. However, we have decided to expand and explore other potential negative effects of Instagram.
As such, our series of 8 photographs explores the darker side to Instagram — where things may not be always as it seems. We went along with a more stylistic approach for our series.
1.Behind The Smile
Instagram users try to upload the best parts of their lives where they seem to be at their happiest. However, flaunting the “perfect life” has brought about a phenomenon where people painfully select and create images to uphold this false and unachievable ideal of perfection.
The girl is clearly in distress but she holds a phone with her Instagram post of smiling lips. The indexical sign here would be that she tries to put up an appearance of being happy when she is actually not. Symbolically, this also represents the larger Instagram culture of people having to put up only the best parts of their lives.
From a critical perspective, some people see photographs as a kind of objective “truth”. As such, when we view Instagram photos, we might assume that most of the Instagrammers lead perfect and happy lives. It is easy to take things at face value and be oblivious to the fact that what we portray on Instagram is really just one aspect of the imperfect lives we lead.
2. Chîckèn Rïçê
Despite the embarrassment, we had to put on serious expressions to emulate how serious these photos mean to Instagrammers. Our exaggeration could bring a light hearted, humorous touch to an otherwise normal situation. We hope for the viewer to laugh at the absurdity of this piece with us.
Chicken rice was chosen because it is a widely known dish that represents the humble heartlands of Singapore. It is a common hawker-center dish and few would expect it to be framed in such an exclusive manner worthy of Instagram likes.
In this comedic piece, one girl holds a flashlight as though it is a professional studio light while the other stands on the seat to get her shot. It is a criticism of how Instagrammers are caught up with this game of popularity where they go to great lengths for staged shots which are sure to garner more likes on Instagram.
3. For Display Only
Things that are meant to be consumed or used, are instead put up for display on Instagram.
Instead of drinking the cup of coffee, it is being displayed as if it is in a museum. This symbolises how Instagram has become similar to a place of exhibition where people showcase and flaunt parts of their life. Even when others see such a picture, they end up scrutinising it and judging it, giving their critic as to whether it is Instagram worthy.
The denotation would be the cup of latte art as a museum exhibit, while the connotation would be the exhibition culture that is apparent on Instagram.
Making use of syntagm, viewers are drawn to look at the coffee first because it is more eye catching before looking at the label above it to make sense of the image. Paradigm is also in play because one would expect an artwork to be a museum exhibit, but it is replaced by a mere cup of coffee.
4. #Groufie Gone Wrong
Taking group shots are fun, until everyone’s fighting for the limelight. One would expect a group selfie to be a happy shot but we wanted to reveal visually how individuals actually desire to stand out and look the best amongst the group. We would always selfishly select a photo that we look the best in, as one’s self worth is often tied to how he or she looks in the photos.
Our photo is a metaphor for the overly competitive Instagram platform, where Instagrammers try to outshine one another. By using the subjective aspect of colour, we hope to show a transition of mood through the different photos. The initial filtered photo has vibrant colours that represent excitement and joy, this gradually progresses to a desaturated photo that represents hostility and displeasure.
5. All Boxed Up
To explore is to discover new things. But ironically, Instagrammers who “explore” are being bombarded by similar photos of their friends looking at their best. The pressure to match up to the rest, in terms of appearances, can get stifling.
With our photo, we composed it to look like the iconic “explore” page of Instagram, filled up with popular Outfit Of The Day shots.
The mime symbolizes voicelessness, where the Instagram user is stripped of her voice as her images speaks on behalf of her. She cannot express imperfections, and is pressured by her fellow Instagrammers to upload similar photos and for her to look her best.
The indexical sign would be how the mime seems to be trapped in the grid, while the symbolic sign would be how she is trapped by the need to portray a perfect self within the 1 x 1 dimensions of an Instagram photo.
By Gestalt Theory of similarity, the dull, black and white mime stands out from the rest as she is dissimilar from her colorful counterparts, hence drawing the viewer’s attention to her.
6. #Foodporn And Friends
We know Singaporeans love their food. But perhaps what we love more is seeing and taking beautiful pictures of food on Instagram.
In Foodporn and Friends, we focus on the stylistically different facial expressions of friends who have to tolerate the photographer. Mealtimes are valued moments of social bonding and interaction. Yet, the photographer is absorbed in capturing her perfect food image instead of enjoying the moment.
The photographer’s hands create a triangular shape, directing the viewer’s focus to the apex — her phone. It is an indexical sign that her hands are outstretched with the phone, implying that she is about to take a photo, and ultimately uploading it on Instagram.
This is just one of the many examples of people prioritising Instagram over their friends and family. Most times, it is better to live in the moment and enjoy your food and company while it is hot, rather than eventually “feasting” on your shots through Instagram.
7. Scale And Crop?
Flat lays have emerged as an increasingly popular trend on Instagram. They’re a simple and visually pleasing way to show off one’s favourite items and current addictions. In our photo, we carefully selected luxury goods and arranged them neatly into a flat lay.
This is a metonymic code as our character’s followers on Instagram would assume her to be rich and living a luxurious lifestyle. For example, owning a Chanel bag is a timeless symbol of wealth and style in our society.
However, the life portrayed on Instagram is not always as we assume it to be. This is symbolized through the tight crop on the flat lay which is the only portion we want others to see.
What is hidden from others is the haphazard mess outside of the crop. From the rest of the items sprawled messily across the table, we could assume that she is an alcoholic, a regular smoker, she takes excessive medication/ drugs and has an unhealthy diet. Putting them together as a metonymic code, the viewer can tell that her life in reality is probably filled with financial issues and stress unlike the image of wealth and style she portrays on Instagram.
8. Instaddict
Instagram has become an obsession for many who constantly refresh their feeds and check the numbers of likes their photo has received. People are helpless to the power of drugs, just like how they seem to be helpless to the power of Instagram. Moreover, people do get “high” from their “popularity” on this social media platform.
In this photo, the girl appears delirious and is probably unaware of her surroundings. She is slumped in a corner, weak and helpless. Instagram is compared to a drug, where people are addicted to it. Like how drugs harm your body, excessive obsession over instagram can be detrimental as well.
There are three levels of signs in this photo. Firstly, the iconic sign would be the girl sniffing the bag of cocaine (for safety issues, we used powder) together with the phone with the Instagram app opened. Secondly, the indexical sign is her stoned expression that leads one to infer that she is dependent on and getting high on drugs. Thirdly, the photo symbolises how Instagram can be an addiction.
