Emoticons are nifty things. They've become an extension of our digital selves, allowing us to communicate a range of emotions simply and effectively in our texts and emails. And given their ubiquity, efforts are even underway to make them more diverse -- both in terms of the way they look and the contexts in which they are deployed.
For emerging British artist Matt Brown, who graduated with a Masters degree from the Royal College of Art in 2003, the emoji, however, is both his muse and self-reflection. "I think all in all they [emoji] are a great addition to the traditional written word. After, all a picture is worth a thousand words ;)," Brown tells WIRED.co.uk in an email.
Finding inspiration in electronic music and videogames, Brown's pieces, Self-portrait Emoticons are about modern day self-expression, he tells us. While the portraits have been drawn using conventional methods of paint on canvas, the resulting images are unmistakably emojified. A tableau of six emoji portraits, which seem like renderings of a stick figure's face up-close are packed together in various emotional states.
"We are conversing more and more in virtual settings, not able to see the whites of peoples eyes," says Brown. "These portraits have zero information regarding the real personality of the
'sitter'. It's like a mask." "This kind of expression is used in so many relationships that people have online, a kind of very one-sided false reality," he noted.
Whether it's because these emoji masks let him readily reflect various emotional states, or out of general convenience, Brown has chosen to shy away from physical society -- much like Japanese otakus. He communicates solely via the internet, and has pretty much chosen to live the life of a hermit for over a decade.
Commenting on the ease of working on projects online without "physically meeting anyone", Brown noted the interdependence of computer tech with all areas of his life from shopping, consuming culture and general communication. "I realised that I had more of a virtual presence than a 'real' one," he said. "This fitted perfectly with what my work is about, so I decided to embrace the idea of being an artist that uses the computer as an extension of himself."
Recalling that he'd started making computer art back in the 1990s, Brown spoke of the changing societal attitudes toward technology. "At the time [in the 90s], I think the attitude towards computers was very different. If you were using them you were seen as a nerd, a geek!" he said. "Now it's the complete opposite, if you don't immerse yourself in virtual environments daily, you're seen as 'behind the times'."
In recent years, emoticons have infiltrated our lives, becoming another medium through which we express a range of emotions in the digital sphere. Given their ubiquity, they've been readily absorbed into pop culture with an Emoji Art and Design Show in 2013 at the Eyebeam Art + Technology Centre in New York showcasing artworks from other emoji-inspired artist such as Maya Ben Ezer and Genie Alfonzo.
With artists worldover taking the commonplace emoji as subject and turning it into something more personal, and Nick Offerman's carved wooden emoji pulling some headlines earlier this month, it looks like emoji art, in all its forms, could be a niche trend set to continue.
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
