"Outdoorsy" Instagram Culture and 19th Century Art: Imperialism in Our National Parks

Presentation Year

2019

College or Department

College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences

Short Description of your Research or Creative Project (700 characters or less)

Curated "Outdoorsy" social media accounts rival 19th century idealized landscape paintings, allowing people to present themselves as adventurous and fulfilled by sharing beautiful photos from their travels. These visualized false landscapes present a new age of imperialist beliefs as themes of colonialism have continued to live on through generations in our culture. In western culture, landscape has often been seen as a commodity to be presented and reconstructed for our enjoyment throughout history. Although Instagram culture has contributed to many changes within our national parks, this “new” culture of objectifying and commodifying the landscape is really nothing new at all.

Permission to Publish Work

No