I AM. Avatars + Identities



I AM. Avatars + Identities: An Expression of Intersections


"I AM." is a mixed media representation and examination of the intersections of my multiple identities. I am an amalgam of my analog and digital selves and thus curated my avatars in analog and digital methods. The creation of this project was in itself an act of curation - a mediation, and also an act of play. I was inspired by my love of mixing physical and digital assets, and also playing with paper dolls and Fashion Plates as a child.

This project is a critique on the concepts of the authenticity, temporality, and automediality of our virtual representations of self. Who am I? What are my identities? How do my identities or avatars present? Am I authentic? What does authenticity mean? Is authenticity the goal of an avatar? Are our identities, both digital and analog, "sincere or are they calculated authenticity, a pose or 'manufactured' pseudo-individuality," as referenced by Smith and Watson in Virtually Me: A Toolbox about Online Self-Presentation. I do not claim to know the answers to these questions, but this work seeks to explore them and ask further questions about them.

Process and mediums include digital photography, royalty-free stock imagery, paper, fabric, thread, transparency film, screenshots, personal trinkets and artwork, Adobe Spark, fun, and loud music.

This project was on view during the 2019 Masters in Emergent Media show at the Champlain College Art Gallery in Burlington, VT.

"I AM. Avatars + Identities: An Expression of Intersections" was created for MFA class EMM 570 Experience Design: Play and Participation. The open-ended project was to create a piece around the concept of the avatar.

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About

Sarah Jerger
Burlington, Vermont
Mom, wife, professional, grad student + maker of things
On a journey to live a creatively-filled and fueled life.
Lover of craft, art, making + slowing down