In The Girls on Instagram the virtual characters that originated from Pontes’s previous work Born Nowhere transcend the realm of Facebook. In the artist’s second social media art project participation is no longer limited to the online environment, but also occurs in the physical world.
The artist and fellow Instagram users make the characters come alive beyond their virtual presence by interpreting their personality and creating a social environment through photographs which they take during their travels. By staging these images according to their own preferences, the participants not only determine and shape the character’s existence in real-life spaces, but also allow them to become part of their personal life and experiences.
The pictures are subsequently posted on Instagram to document the characters’ adventures, due to which The Girls on Instagram remains in a constant state of flux and expansion.