Social Media isn’t what it used to be.
Today, the number 1 way we all use Instagram is to DM our friends comedy videos and Memes. (Which is why comedy absolutely crushes on social right now) It’s the thing people want to see when they use the app.
The context in which we intake media matters. For example, the state of mind we have when we visit a museum is an entirely different state of mind compared to when we enjoy food and drinks with friends at a restaurant. The same is true with social media. It’s become a place for sensationalized videos that are designed to induce a quick reaction to garner views that generate intense feelings that are forgotten as quickly as they were forged. Social media isn’t conducive to intaking and deconstructing your feelings on art. It’s just not the place for it. (Like filling up your car with gas and at the same time trying to analyze and deconstruct the meaning of the Mona Lisa. It’s not the time or place)
Because of this though, we’re trying a new format. Specific posts on this, the Ballet Zaida Zine (Zine pronounced like “MagaZINE”)
The Wikipedia definition of a Zine is; “A zine is a small-circulation self-published work of original or appropriated texts and images, usually reproduced via a copy machine.”
( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zine )
Obviously, our Zine isn’t physical. (Although it could be fun to do a physical issue sometime) But the ethos is the same.
Social Media is designed to be addictive. We scroll until we feel a rush of endorphins, and then we keep scrolling. All the while, even when we aren’t using social media, we hand over every aspect of our digital lives to tech companies that then sell it to advertisers who want to distract your mind and drain your bank account to sell you things to capture that same endorphin rush you were looking for in the first place.
Instead of looking for endorphins by scrolling endlessly through a feed filled with fast moving people, topics and feelings, this is a place you can enjoy without giving up your life to social media companies and advertisers.
This is a place where my art will be shared and you can experience it without the stress of people fighting for your attention through sensationalism.
This is a place to enjoy photography and the thoughts of myself and the artists featured in the work.
This is a place to intake and deconstruct art.
Welcome to the Zine.
-Oliver Endahl