Annegien Schilling is a young multi-talented photographer who became famous and well known for her manipulated self-portraits through her instagram page. The instagram feed features plenty of images that all speak volumes when it comes to identity and the troubles adolescents face whilst growing into adulthood.
Below are images from within the instagram page that I feel relate to my theme of balance, opposing energies and the concept of the human eye in regards to identity. I feel that because this artist is utilising instagram as a driver, it connects to my project on a level that the other artist do not, due to my practice as a whole being instagram based.
Balance: Featuring a strong split between two energies and how each works with each other in harmony and contrast.
All of these images have one thing in common, all of them create a play onto opposing energies that seem to balance each other out even through the composition and the aesthetic of the images. These images deal with areas of identity, labels, split personalities, and light vs dark.
Eyes: Featuring close-ups portraits that emphasise the concept as the eye being a window into the soul and the essence of the self-portrait.
These self-portraits all share the trait of balance and the eyes as a focal point of the image.
I feel there are similarities here that I share with my own practice. Aesthetically very different to my current practice, I find that the concept and attraction of concept is shared. All of the images featured within this instagram page shows a doorway to another side of reality and pulls the viewer in to a life that is not authentic in the way of “seeing” but in the way of “feeling” becoming visualised through photography and illustration. These works evoke emotions within the viewer and create a relatability that is easy to transfer to the viewers own past experience.
Most of the images feature a strong contrast and a highlight that is shared amongst a lot of social media imagery. The aesthetics create an easy going gaze on the viewer without compromising the content or concept of the image.
During my role as Mika I have utilised instagram in a way that has been different to the past personas by interacting with my digital audience and constantly striving to ask questions and get audience participation in regard to Mika’s style and content.
References
Anon, (2019). Surreal Self-Portrait Photo Manipulations By Annegien Schilling. [online] Available at: https://designyoutrust.com/2018/03/surreal-self-portrait-photo-manipulations-by-annegien-schilling/
Instagram.com. (2019). Annegien (@fetching_tigerss) • Instagram photos and videos. [online] Available at: https://www.instagram.com/fetching_tigerss/?hl=en
Leydolph, D. (2019). Amazing Surrealistic Self-Portraits by Annegien Schilling – Le Buzz – Mag. [online] Le Buzz – Mag. Available at: https://lebuzz-mag.com/en/art-design/amazing-surrealistic-self-portraits-by-annegien-schilling/
Photogrist Photography Magazine. (2019). Surreal Portrait Photo-Manipulation by Instagram Star Annegien Schilling. [online] Available at: https://photogrist.com/instagram-star-annegien-schilling/
Michael-Jay Smith MA Photography Critical Research Journal 