Constructing the “Instagirl,” deconstructing the self-brand: Amalia Ulman’s Instagram hoax

Journal Publication ResearchOnline@JCU
Maguire, Emma
Emma Maguire
Abstract

Amalia Ulman is an Argentinian-born Spanish artist who used Instagram as a platform for an art piece titled Excellences & Perfections in which she used images of herself to portray a fictional character whose story unfolded over several months. Her images, replicating popular tropes of digital autobiographical performance were presented and widely read as 'authentic' selfies. This essay examines how Ulman’s performance piece can be understood as an autobiographical mediation that uses networked photo-sharing practices to investigate feminine embodiment and self-representation, and how self-branding in digital media is gendered.

Journal

European Journal of Life Writing

Publication Name

European Journal of Life Writing

Volume

8

ISBN/ISSN

2211-243X

Edition

N/A

Issue

N/A

Pages Count

21

Location

N/A

Publisher

University of Groningen Press

Publisher Url

N/A

Publisher Location

N/A

Publish Date

N/A

Url

N/A

Date

N/A

EISSN

N/A

DOI

10.21827/ejlw.8.35546