‘We can all coexist’: artist Es Devlin uses selfies to unite UK in portrait of a nation
Summary
Artist Es Devlin created a digital art installation at the National Portrait Gallery in London that shows a constantly changing portrait made up of thousands of selfies from people across the UK. The project aims to bring people together by showing their faces blending and shifting, highlighting both differences and connections within British society.Key Facts
- The installation is called "A National Portrait for the National Portrait Gallery."
- It was made with Google Arts & Culture Lab, using technology to turn selfies into charcoal-and-chalk style portraits.
- Thousands of people from across the UK can upload selfies to be part of the evolving portrait.
- The portraits appear on a framed screen and slowly merge and separate, showing faces blending imperfectly.
- Es Devlin hopes the artwork inspires people to coexist despite political and social divisions.
- The project took three years to develop and uses image-generation technology trained on Devlin’s own drawings.
- Devlin acknowledges the tension in using digital technology for art while many artists oppose AI’s use of creative work.
- The installation encourages viewers to pause and truly look at one another in a moment of quiet connection.
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