Who keeps us company while we are confined indoors and isolated? Pareidolia is the psychological phenomenon of assigning living characteristics to everyday objects. 'I See Faces' is an online exhibition of portraits that are not portraits featuring; Andy Warhol, Banksy, Derek Boshier, Jane McAdam Freud, Keith Haring, Shan Hur, KAWS, Kalliopi Lemos and Giovanni Ozzola.
Evolutionary psychologists suggest that ancient ancestors who experienced pareidolia were more likely to survive as a result of a higher personal alert for danger- perceiving things that weren’t always there - preparing them for the times when the threat was real. Whilst babies who recognised faces in quotidien objects were more likely to be cared for and survive according to Carl Sagan who theorised that, “Those infants who a million years ago were unable to recognise a face smiled back less, were less likely to win the hearts of their parents, and less likely to prosper", which allowed pareidolia to be passed on to current generations.
Today we find ourselves in trying times, in need of both comfort and company. 'I See Faces' explores Pareidolia and its endless possibilities. The exhibition is a tonic for our brains presenting works that prompt us to solve problems and interpret patterns which have been proven to reduce uncertainty, anxiety and to help us make sense of our surrounding environments and situations. The spilt liquid in Andy Warhol’s New Coke Drawing (1985), becomes a fizzing face brought to life the more one stares. While Lost Time, Alone Again, Far Far Down by KAWS is fragmented into multiple visages in an acrylic techno scene.
