Lance Rubin

These paintings are about how we (especially youth) use digital media and social media to brand ourselves to a digital public in the form of self pics (self portraits). I use a very flat (matte) paint to completely ungloss the painting, and crush the colors down to the fewest possible to render the subject matter. This stylistic choice reflects my observation that the self portraits are often highly retouched, posed, and otherwise carefully effected to create a particular perception of the individual, hence that person's personal brand. It speaks of a change in the "mask" we present to the world in opposition to our internal world of personal perception, and how this has taken on new dimensions facilitated by digital tools and social media. Whereas big companies have long carefully sculpted their public perception, we as individuals are now doing it too.