Amandine Kuhlmann

A selfie is a photographic self-portrait taken with a mobile phone equipped with a camera to be immediately shared on the internet. Until recently, the power of self-representation was a prerogative limited to artists who had mastery of the technical materials and distribution channels for capturing and distributing images of themselves. With the democratisation of photography and the emergence of the virtual space of the internet, self-portraiture and self-expression are now within everyone's reach.

The selfie as a genre was created by teenage girls who were demanding a space to express their anxieties and desires. This type of image has quickly become common practice among all teenagers, but has also become widespread among adults as a new social ritual. The fundamental characteristic of selfies is that they are a more banal and, above all, more self-indulgent form of self-representation than the usual photographic self-portrait. They seem to be more linked to the state of the moment than to the essence, more to emotion than to feeling.

The democratisation of image production and access to the internet makes it easy for social media users to share millions of photos every day. Capitalist consumerism contributes to this hyper-abundance of images, which in turn creates a great deal of iconic pollution. Photographs are no longer taken to be seen or to preserve memories, but to be shared instantly and compulsively.
This form of self-portraiture presents a new way of relating to the world. Our digital identity is much more important than our real one. Not having a presence in the digital world means not existing. To be or not to be.
The new capitalism of images has found ways to monetise this overexposure of our image through platforms such as TikTok, Instagram and OnlyFans, and has contributed to the continued hypersexualisation of women.

Cash Me Online is a video and photography project in which the author combines performance, selfies, found archive images and deepfakes (the creation and alteration of images through artificial intelligence) to explore the impact of cameras in the age of social media.
The core of the project revolves around the creation of a meticulously crafted hyper-feminine digital alter ego to fully immerse itself in the world of social media.
This digital identity is inspired by other female figures present in the online sphere and aims to be an exploration of female self-representation. The concept of the ‘female gaze’ at a time when women have a prominent presence on screen, representing themselves, contradicts the search for one's own identity and the tension between the standardisation of codes, bodies and the permanence of a single perception of female beauty.

By subverting expectations and introducing elements of unpredictability, Amandine Kuhlma aims to provoke critical thinking about the influence that social media has on self-perception and the social constructs that shape our online experiences.
However, she also highlights the persistence and masked recycling of toxic female stereotypes that have recurred throughout history.