“Open 10 Seconds, 24 Seconds, or Forever”
Combining photography, illustration, and computer-generated imagery, Michigan-based digital artist Mike Campau crafts eye-catching creations that force the viewer to reflect on his/her own life. In his latest series, Antisocial, Campau uses his artistic talents to cleverly comment on the dark side of social media.
Set in eerily isolated locations, each photograph features a single illuminated sign. Though similar to those found outside of gas stations or Googie motels, these marquees ironically advertise a different kind of service: social media websites. Describing Facebook as “the place to go and make everyone think your life is great” and summing up Instagram as a series of attention-seeking exclamations, the revealing signs showcase the underlying antisocial nature of everyone's favorite social media.
Campau employed this imagery as a metaphor for the “singularly isolated posts” we share on sites like Twitter and apps like Snapchat. While these virtual portals are inherently intended to bring us together, they often have the adverse effect, leaving us alone in our own antisocial behaviors.
While he notes that the phenomenon is not entirely problematic, it is clear that Campau is wary of social media's alluring glow. “Social Media is starting to get some pull back, and rightfully so,” he explains. “Each platform has its own problems, but all have had a large impact on society as a whole, both good and bad.”
In Antisocial, a series of social media art, digital artist Mike Campau explores the dark side of everyone's favorite apps.
“The place to go & make everyone think your life is great.”
“Look at me. Look at me. Look at me. Look at me.”
“My political view is all or nothing based on other posts and memes.”
“People I don't really know endorse me for things I really don't do.”
“I spend all day putting my link in project comments and not on my work.”
Mike Campau: Website | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Behance
My Modern Met granted permission to use photos by Mike Campau.
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