When Instagram made its augmented reality software available to the public in August 2019, the platform was quickly flooded with novel, user-generated effects that alter your appearance and surroundings. Suddenly, it seemed, anyone with the time and inclination could create a filter that made it appear as if you were wearing comically large glasses or had sprouted dog’s ears. But the technology quickly caught the attention of contemporary artists too. Filters were developed to be a fun way to engage with followers, but many artists have been drawn by the ability to play with a sense of self and subvert the pressures to conform on social media. In the surreal Dream Machine effect by Mitsuko Ono, for example, a carousel of colorful figures, all wearing your face, spins slowly around your head. Adrian Steckeweh’s effects erase the self entirely, creating the impression that your face is melting or dissolving This story is from Kinfolk Issue Forty-Two Buy Now Related Stories Arts & Culture Issue 47 Alice Sheppard On dance as a channel to commune with the body—even when it hurts. Arts & Culture Issue 47 Dr. Woo Meet the tattoo artist who's inked LA. Arts & Culture Issue 47 Walt Odets The author and clinical psychologist on why self-acceptance is the key to a gay man's well-being. Arts & Culture Fashion Issue 47 A Picture of Health Xiaopeng Yuan photographs the world’s weirdest wellness cures. Arts & Culture Issue 47 Chani Nicholas and Sonya Passi Inside the astrology company on a mission to prove workplace well-being is more than a corporate tagline. Arts & Culture Issue 47 Julia Bainbridge On the life-enhancing potential of not drinking alcohol.
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Arts & Culture Issue 47 Walt Odets The author and clinical psychologist on why self-acceptance is the key to a gay man's well-being.
Arts & Culture Fashion Issue 47 A Picture of Health Xiaopeng Yuan photographs the world’s weirdest wellness cures.
Arts & Culture Issue 47 Chani Nicholas and Sonya Passi Inside the astrology company on a mission to prove workplace well-being is more than a corporate tagline.
