Carla Rossi

Exhibited works:

Untitled 03, 2023

from the series “A Forensic Selfie”

“Images don’t just document identity; they actively construct it, functioning as performative and relational tools. Their impact lies not in the act of taking a photo, but in how images circulate, are received, and shape social belonging. In a networked society driven by algorithms, photography operates as a form of social currency, aligning individuals with movements, political ideas, and cultural identities, while simultaneously categorizing them within predefined digital frameworks. Yet, paradoxically, this very categorization reinforces a sense of belonging, as we define ourselves through the images we create, share, and engage with.

In A Forensic Selfie, I explore the shifting nature of authenticity in a networked visual culture, particularly within photography – a medium historically tied to truth – from forensic investigations to CCTV evidence. I was intrigued by this forensic reading of the camera compared to its dominant use today: social media. As platforms blur the line between real and counterfeit, I question what it means to be authentic in an era of constant surveillance, and therefore, of constant performance. Using FotoForensics – a scientific opensource program designed to detect digital modifications – as a creative tool, the project explores the ambiguity between aestheticization and truth. By manipulating the ‘positive’ image to generate a visual outcome through the software, the forensic tool becomes an apparatus equal to the camera itself, used to cast bodies, create identities, and establish worlds. Combining closely cropped self-portraits with the gaze of the machine algorithm, the work questions the relationship between photography and authenticity in the digital age, framing manipulation as a pursuit of a ‘true self.’”