Terror of Beauty is a debut solo exhibition by Sarah Amrani at Foam in Amsterdam. The Rotterdam-based artist has been working on the show since 2017, which examines the intersection between technology, culture and beauty standards.
But the timing of its opening today (6 Dec 2024) is particularly apt. Just last month, at its European safety forum in Dublin, social media platform TikTok announced new restrictions for under-18s, with users to be blocked from applying ‘glow up’ type filters that distort their appearance: artificially smoothing skin, enlarging features, or altering skin tone. While fun filters providing vintage tints, rainbows and animal ears have existed for over a decade, employed largely to add colour to otherwise routine posts, more recently there’s been a notable revision of our relationship with filters, as those like ‘Bold Glamour’ transform the way we present ourselves online (and subsequently reconsider how we look offline).
