In a media landscape where politics often feels like a spectacle, information is frequently overshadowed by theatrics, leaving the enduring critical issues overlooked.
Capital Gains explores this modern entanglement of power, media, and algorithmic control. Inspired by discussions about insider trading in the American Congress during the summer of 2022, I developed this work. I began by gathering two datasets: one consisting of official congressional portraits and another with images of stock trading software. Using a basic StyleGAN algorithm originally trained on faces, I trained the model on the datasets to generate various photos and videos. Through this experimentation, I merged stock trading imagery with official portraits of the American Congress. By distorting familiar images of power, I aim to highlight the profound impact algorithms have on shaping and manipulating the media we consume.
Created from official congress portraits and stock trading software images. StyleGAN algorithm generated video.
Still images.