Incomparable

collaboration

Incomparable was a collaboration between myself and Olivia Emile and explored a dynamic that many users have with their avatars / online identities. Virtual selves need not be explicit about their shortcomings or insecurities - they are more often than not idealized representations of their human counterparts. As a result, it becomes easy to begin to compare oneself to this more perfect other, and perhaps struggle to a greater extent with the awkwardness of reality.     

In Incomparable, there is a live feed directed at a chair that Olivia sits in -  masking the word "Incomparable". The feed is sent over to a laptop but is delayed by about 20 seconds. After sitting for awhile and becoming acclimated to the social environment, Olivia leaves her seat. Passing by the computer, she is seduced by her own virtual image. She sits down, and begins to mimic her virtual self. The video eventually catches up to the moment when Olivia stood up from her seat, and now her own image is replaced by the word "Incomparable". Released from the comparison, Olivia returns uncomfortably to the chair, and slowly becomes reacquainted  with the social setting - the process begins again.  

video documentation