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Dissecting the new rage of virtual models and why they might be problematic: Instagram models real or fake

The internet has seen a host of new trends, with social media changing the very fabric of our society. One of these new fads is using computer-generated models as social media influencers. As platforms like Instagram become ever more confusing and convoluted, lines between reality and fantasy are blurred as the popularity of public figures that exist only online increases. Figures like @lilmiquela, @shudu.gram, and @opalslutuniverse are pioneers in this new frontier of virtual beauty, all representing women of color, these accounts are all renderings of 3D modeling programs. Might these figures be promoting representation or are they capitalizing on the barely diverse fashion industry’s new interest in women of color? These three accounts all have large follower bases ranging from 13K to 1M, but a little investigating has uncovered some distressing facts on their existence.

(Screenshot from Cameron James-Wilson’s Instagram comment section and Screenshot from @shudu.gram)

@shudu.gram racked in a ton of followers after Fendy beauty reposted a stunning pic of her with one of their lipsticks on. This dark-skinned beauty was receiving incredible support and admiration from followers and fellow models, that is until Cameron James-Wilson came forward with the confession that @shudu.gram was, in fact, his digital creation. This shocked her or should I say his followers and the internet with a host of articles published on the manner. The Independent and Blavity both wrote articles on the upsetting fact that a white male photographer created a digital version of a dark-skinned woman, deceived the internet into believing it was a real person all while capitalizing on the essentialism of the black female body. Those familiar with Cameron’s photography work are blasting the artist for taking away modeling opportunities from real life dark-skinned models that could actually advance their careers and profit from having the same looks as Cameron’s digital apparition.

https://www.indy100.com/article/photographer-shudu-gram-black-model-instagram-viral-racism-cameron-james-wilson-computer-generated-8237981

https://blavity.com/a-white-photographer-commercialized-and-capitalized-off-a-fake-black-model-he-created-himself

Is the new trend of digital Instagram models perpetuating the fetishization of black female bodies?

Refinery 29 also addressed this controversy by featuring a host of Twitter reactions on the manner. The public reaction, especially from women of color is pointing out the irony of the situation. Rather than empowering black women, many are addressing how Cameron is feeding into the fetishization of an already fetishized and marginalized group. Cameron, who was quoted saying that “there’s a big kind of movement with dark skin models”, is admitting to his exploitation of a current trend. Twitter user @adrianette_, whose post was featured in the Refinery 29 article, exclaimed “Black skin is not a trend. Black skin is not a toy. Black women even more not so”.

https://www.refinery29.com/2018/03/192224/shudu-gram-black-fake-supermodel-fenty-beauty?bucketed=true&bucketing_referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F

Photographer Cameron James-Wilson, the white male creator of Shudu Gram, despite claiming the virtual model to be an art piece, has profited from using her image to promote brands. Using a 3D modeling program, Cameron found a way to capitalize on the beauty of a dark-skinned woman without ever having to pay one.

In a BBC article, Cameron is quoted saying “I think of her as a kind of mannequin. Once you’ve created her, you can pose her and give her an expression,” he says. “It’s like having a doll, a dress-up Barbie”. Cameron’s actions are being seen as appropriation by many of Shudu’s followers. As soon as dark-skinned beauty becomes a trend with models like Duckie, white people like Cameron find a way to own and exploit that for their own profit. Despite the artistry, it’s not just art when companies are paying Cameron to have his virtual creation model. Instead of a real-life dark-skinned model getting an opportunity in an extremely racist industry and making money, a white photographer is.

http://www.bbc.com/capital/story/20180402-the-fascinating-world-of-instagrams-virtual-celebrities

Possible Empowerment?

Another less controversial computer generated instagram account is @opalslutuniverse. This account is handled by artist Janice Prempeh or J-Nice Prempelli, a woman of color, whose own instagram @yungprempelli is full of aesthetic nudes and crystals. Vice did a write-up of this up and coming account that features photos of the digital model Opal and an interview by her creator. Both of J-Nice Prempelli’s accounts are seen as a feminist space for sexual liberation, with the words “I Block All Men” written in the bio of her personal account. On her art account which features her digital creation Opal, “Not a sex doll you’re just ugly” is written in the bio. However, she does play with the idea of Opal being a sex doll with recent posts fully exploring that concept. Selling posters and doing commissions of her artistic creation, Opal is only increasing in popularity. Seizing Instagram’s imaginations and possibly fantasies as well, J-Nice is building herself an empire around the black female form, whether its real or digitalized.

https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/ne94mx/the-opalslut-universe-is-a-utopian-world-full-of-nsfw-selfies

There is this new trend of CG (Computer Generated) models...

The newest example of this is @lilmiquela who with 1 million followers is a Brazilian-American who started her instagram account in 2016 and has since been named Instagram’s ‘It girl’ by multiple high-fashion magazines. She has been interviewed numerous times and she poses wearing Chanel and Burberry. Actively vocal about social justice issues like Black Lives Matter and fundraising for GirlsCode, this social media influencer is adored by many. One problem is that she isn’t real, at least in the sense of physically existing in a space outside of a computer. This computer generated influencer has been speculated of being an avatar or virtual model like Shudu, except many of her followers think that she might be real. People think there might be a real person behind the Instagram posts and that her face is just heavily edited. This conspiracy is supported by the fact that many of her photos appear to be in public spaces and are also taken with other social media influencers who are real. However, this past friday, the fact that she is in fact not human has come to light. After being hacked by another CG model, who is a vocal Trump supporter, @lilmiquela came forward and told her fans that she was a robot? This revelation came as a surprise to many of her followers and apparently to her as well.

This account which has amassed 1M followers, participated in paid sponsorship deals for brands like Prada, is in fact not human or even run by a POC. This account is run by a...white male? Who is Daniel Cain and how has he profited from creating an online persona of a woman of color? Not only is Daniel Cain a white man, but also after looking at Brud’s website, the company that created lilmiquela, there is an active sponsorship of Donald Trump for president. This company's beliefs definitely do not correspond with Lil Miquela’s views and the followers she’s attracted. Lilmiquela has transcended the world of instragram model’s blurring the lines between reality and fantasy while also making people not care about these distinctions. In response to Lil Miquela’s confession that she is not human, she’s had a huge flux of support from celebrities and fans, who are empathetic to her situation of identity crisis.

https://vmagazine.com/article/new-age-logomania/

https://www.businessoffashion.com/articles/intelligence/meeting-fashions-first-computer-generated-influencer-lil-miquela-sousa

http://cainintelligence.com/

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/lil-miquela-the-instagram-model-whose-fans-cannot-decide-whether-she-is-real-or-fake-a7228271.html

https://fashionista.com/2018/02/computer-generated-cgi-influencers-beauty-industry

http://www.mediafiledc.com/effect-virtual-model-influencer-instagram/

https://quartzy.qz.com/1232293/photograph-cameron-james-wilson-created-a-fake-black-supermodel/

https://petapixel.com/2018/04/18/this-app-lets-you-shoot-virtual-models-in-the-real-world/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3D_modeling

https://blavity.com/a-white-photographer-commercialized-and-capitalized-off-a-fake-black-model-he-created-himself

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