What would it feel like if you could physically inhabit a digital/virtual space? In response to the pervasive use of technology in replacing face to face interactions, this work attempts to describe our new merging reality, a world where online life has become more real than the “real”.
‘Family Portrait 2020’ captures a family zoom call that took place during the first pandemic lockdown. Screenshots are captured and the images are fragmented to imagine its existence behind the screen. Through the use of the analogue medium of printmaking, a response to the chaos of the internet is made with the slow and methodical process of etching. Printmaking as a medium itself is always in flux, from plate to paper to pixel. Memorialising the flickering and constant shifts of the internet, these works are a reminder of connection through the screen. They are also a reminder of distance and the absence of physical touch. Intrigued by the fact that whilst we are tethered to each other, our networked life allows us to hide from each other. Technology has become like a phantom limb.
Research
