In this work, I create abstract imagery that is born on the internet but evolves into physical space, using tens of thousands of strangers’ selfies as source material. In the context of the omnipresent personal camera and web 2.0 access, the selfie phenomenon is indicative of a contemporary definition of identity that is self-prescribed and self-published. This work is rooted in that phenomenon, built upon the ubiquity of photography while operating between the personally important and the indistinguishable mass.
In this work, I use a custom computer program to arbitrarily select strangers’ selfies on Tumblr, then abstract each one. My program abstracts them by isolating the pixels of each selected selfie, and then randomly redistributing that data. I transform select abstractions into large and backlit 3D lenticulars, which are effectively antithetical to their small and flat JPEG origins. These stereoscopic objects offer a physical in-person experience that cannot be reproduced via a screen, essentially making them non-internet objects that were born on the internet.
— Quinn Tivey