Antisocialization Project Descriptions
Cary M Silverman
TheLASIKDocPhotogrqphy
AGGRAVATION
Atlantic City 2023
"Aggravation" captures a moment of pure emotional truth that adds psychological depth to the Antisocialization Project. The man's gesture—hand covering his face in what appears to be frustration or exasperation—while simultaneously clutching his phone creates a powerful visual metaphor for our conflicted relationship with digital technology.
The composition illustrates the internal tension many experience with their devices. His body language suggests stress, overwhelm, or disappointment, yet he maintains his grip on the phone, unable or unwilling to disconnect from whatever is causing his distress. This captures something essential about digital dependency—even when our devices cause anxiety or frustration, we remain tethered to them.
What makes this image particularly powerful is how it moves beyond simple documentation of antisocial behavior to capture the emotional cost of our digital habits. The man's visible distress suggests that constant connectivity isn't just isolating us from others—it's potentially harming our psychological well-being. His posture conveys the weight of information overload, digital anxiety, or perhaps the frustration of trying to manage relationships and responsibilities through a small screen.
"Aggravation" perfectly captures this moment where technology shifts from tool to burden, where the promise of connection becomes a source of stress and disconnection. This photograph reveals the emotional underbelly of our digital age—the psychological toll of living increasingly mediated lives.
ALONE IN A CROWD
Berlin 2024
An elderly man sits in front of a café terrace, completely absorbed in his device while separated by only a pane of glass from another person inside the café who is equally engaged with their own screen.
The composition reveals the tragic irony of our digital age through this simple barrier of glass. Two people occupy the same café space—one inside, one outside—yet both have retreated into separate digital worlds that make them more isolated from each other than the physical window ever could. The transparent barrier becomes a metaphor for how digital devices create invisible walls between us, keeping us apart even when we're practically within touching distance.
The Berlin café setting amplifies this tragedy. These are spaces with centuries of tradition built around conversation, debate, people-watching, and spontaneous human encounter. The "ESPRESSO • CAPPU..." signage speaks to a culture where coffee consumption was inherently social—a ritual that brought people together for extended conversation and connection. Instead, the café has become a collection of individual digital workstations where people happen to consume beverages in proximity to each other.
What makes this particularly poignant is seeing an elderly person who lived through decades of pre-digital social life now exhibiting the same disconnected behavior as younger generations.
This suggests that antisocialization has become so pervasive it transcends generational experience, converting even those who knew different ways of being social.
Despite being surrounded by people, history, architecture, and endless opportunities for human connection, both figures have chosen a form of engagement that leaves them fundamentally isolated—connected to distant digital networks while disconnected from the immediate human presence just feet away. The photograph suggests we've created a world where loneliness persists even in the midst of community, where we can be alone together even when separated by nothing more than glass.
ALONE IN BERLIN
Berlin 2023
A young woman in the foreground, absorbed in her phone while walking through a beautiful historic district of Berlin, embodies the modern paradox of being physically present in spaces rich with history and culture while remaining psychologically absent.
The image brilliantly contrasts the weight of place with the lightness of digital engagement. Berlin's architecture speaks to centuries of human drama, cultural achievement, and historical significance—this is a city where every street corner holds stories of human struggle, creativity, and connection. Yet the subject moves through this profound environment without lifting her eyes from her screen, missing the very experiences that draw people to such historically rich places.
The European setting adds layers of meaning about how digital antisocialization has become a global phenomenon. This isn't just an American problem—it's colonized urban experiences across cultures and continents. The elegant buildings and classical architecture represent the kind of environments that once fostered intellectual discourse, artistic inspiration, and cultural exchange, now serving as mere backdrops for continued screen engagement.
ALONE ON THE BOARDWALK
Atlantic City 2023
This photographnperfectly captures the generational divide in how we experience shared public spaces, creating a powerful commentary on what we've gained and lost in our digital evolution.
The left side of the frame tells one story—a man completely absorbed in his phone, hunched over in the classic posture of digital engagement. Despite being in what appears to be a beautiful natural setting with an ocean view, he's psychologically transported elsewhere, missing the immediate sensory experience of sea air, natural light, and the expansive horizon.
The right side tells a different story entirely. Three women, clearly of an older generation, sit upright and alert, engaged with their physical environment and seemingly available for conversation or shared observation. They represent a way of being in public spaces that prioritizes presence, awareness, and the possibility of human connection over digital stimulation.
The boardwalk setting amplifies this contrast beautifully. Boardwalks were designed as social spaces—places for strolling, people-watching, casual encounters, and shared appreciation of natural beauty. They represent communal leisure at its finest, yet the scene shows how digital devices can privatize even the most inherently social environments.
The physical positioning reinforces the thematic divide. The man sits apart, his body language creating a barrier between himself and the women, while the three women occupy a continuous social space, their postures open and engaged with their surroundings. The empty space between them becomes symbolic of the gap between digital and analog ways of experiencing public life.
"Alone on the Boardwalk" reminds us that despite being surrounded by people in a public setting designed for community, the man has created his own island of isolation. The irony is that he's chosen to be alone while the others have chosen to be present and potentially social.
This photograph serves as a poignant reminder of what constitutes genuine leisure and whether our devices enhance or diminish our ability to fully experience the restorative power of natural settings and human community.
BOARDWALK POSSE
Atlantic City 2023
This photograph serves as a brilliant metaphor for how antisocialization can masquerade as social behavior. From a distance, the women appear to be a connected group enjoying each other's company. Up close, the reality is that they're each in their own digital bubble, missing
both the immediate pleasure of friendship and the broader social energy of the boardwalk environment.
What initially reads as confident group movement is actually a perfect example of how digital devices can create the illusion of togetherness while people remain individually disconnected. They're walking together as a group, moving in the same direction, yet each of the front three is psychologically elsewhere, engaged with their screens rather than each other or their surroundings.
The boardwalk setting—traditionally a space for social interaction, people-watching, and shared experience—becomes a backdrop for parallel digital isolation. They're participating in the social ritual of group movement while missing the actual social experience.
"Boardwalk Posse" is ironic—they form a physical group but not a social one. This image perfectly captures how digital devices allow us to maintain the appearance of social connection while actually undermining the very relationships we're supposedly maintaining. It's a devastating commentary on how thoroughly antisocialization has infiltrated even our group social activities.
BOOKWORM
Aspen 2024
"Bookworm" presents a fascinating counterpoint that adds nuanced complexity to the Antisocialization Project. In an elegant coffee shop setting that evokes old-world literary culture—ornate ceiling, crystal chandelier, classical architectural details—we see a striking juxtaposition between traditional and digital forms of solitary engagement.
The composition creates a dialogue between different eras of antisocial behavior. The woman on the left absorbed in her phone represents contemporary digital disconnection, while the man in the center, reading a book, embodies a more traditional form of public solitude. Both are equally disengaged from their immediate social environment, yet their choices of medium suggest different relationships with isolation and engagement.
This image brilliantly complicates the narrative of the series by asking whether the issue is truly about digital devices or about our broader tendency toward individual rather than communal engagement in public spaces. The bookworm has always been a familiar figure in cafés—someone who brings private intellectual pursuits into social settings, creating an island of solitude within community spaces.
The ornate setting reinforces this historical continuity. Coffeehouses and literary cafés have long been places where people came to read, write, and think individually while being surrounded by others. The elaborate décor suggests a space designed for contemplation and quiet intellectual pursuits, making both forms of solitary engagement—digital and analog—seem contextually appropriate.
Yet there's something different about the quality of attention each represents. The book reader appears more settled, more deliberately engaged with substantial content, while the phone user exhibits the restless, fragmented attention characteristic of digital consumption. The physical book suggests sustained focus and intentional choice, while the phone implies the constant stream of notifications and shallow scrolling that characterizes much digital engagement.
"Bookworm" acknowledges this complexity while still maintaining the project's critical perspective—even "acceptable" forms of public solitude contribute to the broader pattern of choosing private engagement over social awareness and connection.
BUSINESS CALL
Denver 2024
This image transforms an urban underpass into a stage for modern isolation, where dramatic lighting and imposing concrete structures frame a solitary figure absorbed in digital communication.
The architectural setting becomes a character in itself—the brutalist concrete, geometric shadows, and industrial infrastructure create an environment that feels both monumental and alienating. The person appears dwarfed by these massive urban systems, emphasizing how individual human connection has become subordinated to larger technological and economic forces. The harsh geometric patterns of light and shadow mirror the rigid structures of contemporary digital communication.
What makes this image particularly powerful is how it captures the collision between human scale and urban infrastructure. The figure stands alone in this vast concrete canyon, engaged in what the title suggests is "business"—perhaps representing how professional obligations and digital connectivity have taken over even our most solitary moments. The phone call becomes another form of tethering, preventing genuine solitude or presence.
The dramatic lighting creates an almost film noir quality that elevates this everyday scene into something more existential. The interplay of light and shadow suggests the psychological complexity of our relationship with technology—the bright spots and dark spaces that digital connectivity creates in our lives.
The title "Business Call" adds layers of meaning about how work has expanded beyond traditional boundaries, following us into every space through our devices. Even in transit, in architectural spaces designed for movement and transition, we remain bound to professional obligations and digital communication networks.
COMMUTERS
PATH 2023
The subway car, filled with passengers making their daily journeys together, has become a collection of individual digital isolation pods rather than a communal space where strangers share the experience of moving through the city.
The composition reveals the pervasive nature of digital disconnection across the entire frame. Nearly every visible passenger is absorbed in their device—phones, tablets, or other screens—creating a scene where physical proximity exists without any social awareness or possibility of human interaction. The subway car has been transformed from a public space into a series of private digital bubbles.
What makes this image particularly striking is how it represents the loss of one of urban life's most democratic experiences. Public transportation traditionally forced people from different backgrounds, ages, and walks of life to share space and time, creating opportunities for observation, reflection, and occasional human connection. Now, these same spaces have become venues for collective retreat from the very diversity and human richness that makes city life valuable.
The lighting and industrial setting of the subway car emphasize the mechanical nature of this daily ritual—people being transported through urban space while remaining psychologically disconnected from both their journey and their fellow travelers. The "Live in Harmony" signage mockingly reminds us that although this is public infrastructure designed to serve community needs, it's being used to facilitate individual digital consumption.
"Commuters" captures both the literal reality—people traveling to work or home—and the deeper tragedy of what commuting has become. These passengers are commuting not just through physical space but away from shared human experience, turning one of the last remaining spaces where strangers naturally gathered into another venue for antisocial digital engagement.
ENJOYING THE CHERRY BLOSSOMS
Branch Brook Park 2023
Set against the stunning backdrop of blooming cherry trees—one of nature's most celebrated seasonal spectacles—families have gathered for what should be a shared experience of natural beauty, yet many remain absorbed in their digital devices rather than the magnificent display surrounding them.
This illustrates the modern paradox of presence versus engagement. The cherry blossoms create a breathtaking canopy overhead, a fleeting natural phenomenon that people traditionally
travel great distances to witness and celebrate together. Yet in the foreground, we see the
now-familiar pattern: adults focused on screens while walking through this wonderland, children being carried or guided but not necessarily encouraged to look up and marvel at the natural spectacle.
The parents, absorbed in their devices while surrounded by one of spring's most magnificent displays, become a symbol of how digital engagement can blind us to immediate beauty and wonder. This is particularly striking because cherry blossom viewing has deep cultural significance as a communal activity—families and friends gathering to appreciate the ephemeral beauty of the blooms, sharing food, conversation, and collective awe.
The pathway setting reinforces themes of missed connection. Parks and walking paths were designed to encourage leisurely exploration, conversation, and shared discovery. Instead, they've become corridors where people move through natural beauty while psychologically elsewhere, missing the very experiences they presumably came to enjoy.
This photograph demonstrates how antisocialization has extended beyond social spaces into our relationship with nature itself, transforming even the most spectacular natural displays into backdrops for continued digital engagement.
FAMILY BRUNCH
Atlantic City 2022
This scene transforms what should be an intimate family gathering into a study of collective digital retreat, where multiple generations have simultaneously abandoned face-to-face connection for individual screen engagement.
The composition is devastating in its completeness—every visible family member is absorbed in their own device, creating a tableau of shared physical space but complete psychological separation. The casual restaurant setting, with its communal tables and relaxed atmosphere, was designed to facilitate conversation and bonding, yet the family has effectively privatized this public space into individual digital cocoons.
What makes this image particularly powerful is the generational representation. From what appears to be teenagers to adults, each person demonstrates the same disconnected posture and downward gaze. This isn't a case of one generation influencing another—it's a wholesale adoption of antisocial behavior across age groups, suggesting how thoroughly this pattern has infiltrated family dynamics.
The "PLEASE DO NOT" sign visible in the background adds unintentional commentary, though we can't see what's prohibited. The irony is profound—while the restaurant posts rules about acceptable behavior, the most antisocial behavior of all—completely ignoring the people you're dining with—goes unregulated and apparently unnoticed.
"Family Brunch" emphasizes the tragic transformation of a traditional bonding ritual. Sunday brunch once represented leisurely family time, extended conversation, and the strengthening of relationships. Here, it's become merely a logistical gathering—bodies in proximity while minds remain miles apart.
This photograph serves as perhaps the most heartbreaking example in the series because it captures how antisocialization has invaded our most intimate relationships, turning family meals into collective solitude.
FLOWER CHILD
PATH 2024
"Flower Child" creates a powerful commentary on how digital engagement has transformed even the most individualistic and rebellious forms of self-expression. The young woman's striking appearance—adorned with flowers in her hair, alternative fashion, striped socks, and distinctive boots—suggests someone who has consciously chosen to express creativity and nonconformity, yet she remains absorbed in the same digital patterns that characterize mainstream behavior.
The scene brilliantly juxtaposes her carefully curated aesthetic of individuality with the universal posture of digital disconnection. She's decorated herself as a living work of art, someone who clearly values visual expression and creative identity, yet her attention is directed toward a screen rather than engaging with the world around her or allowing others to engage with her unique presence.
The subway setting adds another layer of irony. Public transportation has traditionally been a space where striking individuals like her would attract attention, spark conversations, or at least invite curious observation. Her appearance suggests someone who wants to be seen and perhaps to inspire or provoke thought. Instead, both she and the blurred figure in the background remain locked in their separate digital worlds, missing the very human interaction her self-expression might invite.
The "MANUAL CONTROL" sign visible in the frame becomes metaphorically significant—while the subway system offers manual override options, she appears to have surrendered control to her device, choosing automated digital engagement over the manual work of being present and socially available.
"Flower Child" evokes the 1960s counterculture movement that celebrated human connection, community, and breaking free from social constraints. The tragic irony is that this modern flower child has adopted the aesthetic of rebellion while conforming to the most pervasive antisocial behavior of our time, demonstrating how thoroughly digital disconnection has hijacked even our most creative and individualistic expressions.
FOLLOW THE RED BRICK WALL
NYC 2023
This image captures two figures moving through urban space while remaining completely disconnected from their physical environment and each other, despite sharing the same pathway and moment.
The brick wall becomes a leading line that should connect these two pedestrians in a shared urban experience, yet each remains isolated in their own digital bubble. The woman in the foreground, with headphones and phone, has created a complete sensory barrier—both visual and auditory—that blocks out not just human interaction but her entire physical environment. The figure in the background mirrors this behavior, absorbed in her own device.
What makes this image particularly striking is how it captures the paradox of guided movement without awareness. They're both following the same architectural pathway, yet neither is truly present in the space they're navigating. The wall provides direction for their bodies while their minds inhabit completely separate digital territories.
The photograph emphasizes isolation through spacing and repetition. The similar postures and behaviors create visual rhythm that reinforces how normalized this disconnected movement has become. They're not unusual—they represent the typical way people now move through urban environments, guided by infrastructure but psychologically absent.
"Follow the Red Brick Wall" suggests the automatic, unconscious nature of how we navigate physical space while mentally elsewhere. The wall provides the path, but neither walker is truly following it—they're following digital signals instead, using the physical world merely as a backdrop for continued screen engagement.
This image shows how digital disconnection transforms even the simple act of walking through the city into an experience of parallel isolation, where shared physical infrastructure fails to create any sense of community or mutual awareness.
GIRL TALK
NYC 2023
Two young women sit at an outdoor café table in a beautiful garden setting—the ideal environment for the kind of intimate conversation and connection that "girl talk" traditionally represents—yet both are completely absorbed in their individual devices.
The image emphasizes the tragedy of missed connection within a setting specifically designed for it. The charming outdoor café atmosphere, with its wrought iron chairs, small round table, and natural surroundings, creates the perfect stage for friendship, conversation, and shared experience. The shopping bags suggest they've been out together, presumably enjoying each
other's company, yet they've retreated into separate digital worlds despite choosing to sit down together.
What makes this image particularly poignant is how it represents the loss of a specific cultural tradition. "Girl talk" historically meant intimate conversation, sharing secrets, discussing relationships, and the kind of deep bonding that creates and maintains friendships. Instead, we see two friends choosing to engage with distant digital networks rather than the person sitting directly across from them.
The natural lighting and peaceful setting emphasize what they're missing—not just each other's company, but the restorative power of genuine conversation in a beautiful environment. This should be a moment of connection, laughter, and the kind of shared experience that strengthens relationships and creates lasting memories.
This perfectly captures the gap between expectation and reality. The "girl talk" is happening through their devices with distant parties rather than face-to-face with the friend who made the effort to be physically present.
HANDMAID'S TALE
NYC 2023
The juxtaposition of the man absorbed in his device next to the woman in scarf and mask creates an almost dystopian tableau that speaks to broader themes of disconnection and dehumanization in our digital age.
The composition is structured around contrast and irony. The "SPEED LIMIT 20" and "SLOW ZONE" signs in the background create a perfect metaphor for the pace of modern life—we're mandated to slow down physically while accelerating digitally. The man rushes through his screen interactions while physically constrained by urban infrastructure designed to promote safety and community awareness.
The woman's scarves figure becomes almost spectral in this context, her anonymity emphasized by the scarf and mask while the man beside her remains equally anonymous despite his visible face—absorbed as he is in his digital world. Although together, neither acknowledges the other's presence, creating parallel forms of invisibility within the same frame.
"The Handmaid's Tale" adds layers of meaning about surveillance, control, and the erosion of human connection. In Atwood's dystopia, people are isolated and controlled through systematic dehumanization. Here, we see a different kind of control—the voluntary surrender of awareness and presence to digital devices, creating our own forms of social blindness.
The urban setting reinforces themes of modern alienation. Despite the residential architecture suggesting community and neighborhood life, both figures exist in isolation—one hidden behind
fabric, the other behind technology. The street lamp and urban infrastructure frame them but cannot illuminate or connect their separate experiences.
This photograph suggests that antisocialization isn't just about ignoring others while using devices—it's about the broader erosion of social awareness, empathy, and the basic human acknowledgment that occurs when we move through public spaces as disconnected individuals rather than community members.
HAPPINESS
NYC 2023
A young woman sits outside a pizzeria, eating from a box that literally advertises "one slice at a time happiness," yet she remains absorbed in her phone rather than savoring the moment or the food that promises such simple pleasure.
This reveals the modern paradox of consumption without satisfaction. Pizza represents one of our most inherently social foods—traditionally shared among friends, enjoyed during casual conversations, and associated with relaxed, communal pleasure. The box's promise of incremental happiness through simple enjoyment contrasts starkly with her distracted, isolated consumption of the meal while scrolling through her device.
Her shopping bags suggest she's been pursuing satisfaction through material acquisition as well, surrounding herself with the artifacts of consumer culture that promise fulfillment. Yet despite engaging in multiple forms of consumption—material goods, food, and digital content—she appears disconnected from the joy any of these activities should provide.
The pizzeria setting reinforces the tragic irony. These casual dining spaces were designed for the kind of uncomplicated social pleasure the pizza box advertises—places where people traditionally gather to enjoy food together and experience straightforward happiness through shared meals and conversation. Instead, she's transformed this inherently social experience into another venue for digital isolation.
"Happiness" becomes a profound question rather than a statement: In our pursuit of satisfaction through shopping, eating, and digital engagement, are we actually moving further away from the simple happiness that's readily available to us? The photograph suggests that genuine contentment might require presence rather than consumption, engagement with our immediate experience rather than retreat into digital distraction. True happiness—the kind the pizza box promises—may be found not in accumulating more but in fully experiencing what we already have.
INTIMATE CONVERSATIONS
Jersey City 2023
This photograph captures a table of three in a trendy restaurant with exposed brick and modern lighting—an atmosphere designed for socializing and connection—yet two of the diners are completely absorbed in their individual devices while the third person, ignored by his companions, pours water in what appears to be an attempt to maintain some semblance of hospitality and shared experience.
The composition creates a heartbreaking dynamic that epitomizes the central tragedy of digital antisocialization. The person pouring water becomes almost heroic—the lone guardian of social ritual and care, trying to preserve the essence of shared dining while his two companions have completely abandoned the communal experience for their separate digital worlds. He's attending to his friends' physical needs even as those friends psychologically abandon the table.
What makes this image particularly powerful is the contrast it creates within the same frame. The foreground and background reveal other tables where diners are actually engaged with each other, demonstrating that genuine conversation and connection remain possible and are actively happening in the same space. This makes the phone-absorbed trio's disconnection even more stark—their isolation is a choice, not an inevitability.
The restaurant's warm, inviting design elements—comfortable seating, intimate lighting, and communal atmosphere—create a sharp contrast with the cold reality of digital disconnection at this particular table. The space was explicitly designed to encourage interaction and shared experience, yet two-thirds of this group have retreated into private digital bubbles that prevent the very connection the venue promotes.
"Intimate Conversations" highlights exactly what's absent from this scene—the "conversations" are happening between each person and their device rather than among the three people sharing the meal. The image captures how we've maintained the forms of social dining while abandoning its essential content, creating the appearance of togetherness while experiencing fundamental disconnection from the people who matter most.
iPHONE FRENZY
NYC 2025
Hundreds of people are gathered for what appears to be a public event—traditionally a moment of collective experience and shared attention—yet a striking number are experiencing it through their device screens rather than directly.
The photograph creates a visual paradox that's almost overwhelming in its scope. The sheer density of people suggests community and togetherness, but scattered throughout this sea of
humanity are individuals holding up phones, creating barriers between themselves and the live experience unfolding before them. They're physically present but psychologically removed, choosing mediated experience over immediate reality.
What makes this image particularly compelling is how it captures the modern phenomenon of "performing attendance" rather than actually attending. Many aren't simply documenting the moment—they're living it through their screens, watching the event through their viewfinders rather than with their own eyes. The irony is profound: they've come together to share an experience, then chosen to isolate themselves from that very experience.
The elevated perspective allows one to see the full scope of this behavior pattern. The phones create small rectangular interruptions throughout the organic flow of faces and bodies, like digital static disrupting human connection. Some people are clearly engaged with the event itself, but most others are engaged with capturing or consuming it digitally.
iPHONUS INTERRUPTUS
NYC 2023
"iPhonus Interruptus" captures a fascinating moment of role reversal. The young woman, who had been absorbed in her phone while standing in the middle of a busy intersection, has been jolted out of her digital trance by the realization that she's become the subject of a photograph—and her expression suggests clear annoyance at this interruption.
This creates perfect irony: she appears irritated not by the potential danger of being distracted by her phone in traffic, but by having her digital solitude disrupted by the camera. The crosswalk stripes beneath her feet emphasize that she's literally in the middle of the street—a space designed for movement and requiring awareness—yet her frustration seems directed at being photographed rather than at her own risky behavior.
This moment of "interruptus" reveals something profound about how deeply we've normalized dangerous levels of digital engagement. Her annoyance suggests that she views her right to digital privacy and uninterrupted screen time as more important than basic safety awareness or social courtesy in shared public spaces. The interruption of her phone absorption appears to be more bothersome to her than the interruption her stationary phone use creates for pedestrian flow around her.
The urban canyon of buildings and flowing city life creates a dynamic backdrop that emphasizes how her digital pause disrupts the natural rhythm of urban movement. Yet when confronted with documentation of this antisocial behavior, her reaction suggests defensiveness rather than
self-awareness.
"iPhonus Interruptus" brilliantly captures this moment when digital engagement is broken by real-world intrusion. The photograph becomes a study in priorities: her expression suggests that being photographed while engaging in antisocial behavior is more problematic than the
antisocial behavior itself. It reveals how protective we've become of our digital bubbles, treating any interruption of screen time—even in obviously inappropriate settings—as a violation rather than an opportunity for awareness.
I SCREAM!
Denville, NJ 2023
"I Scream" delivers a brilliantly punned title that captures the absurdity of digital disconnection in one of life's most joyful settings. Here in an ice cream parlor—a place specifically designed for pleasure, indulgence, and often social celebration—multiple customers stand in line absorbed in their devices rather than anticipating the sweet treat ahead or engaging with their companions.
The image perfectly illustrates how antisocialization has infiltrated even our most innocent pleasures. Ice cream parlors traditionally represent childhood joy, family outings, dates, and casual social gatherings. The very act of choosing flavors often involves conversation, sharing tastes, and collective decision-making. Instead, these customers have transformed the experience into individual digital consumption while waiting for actual consumption.
The woman on the left, completely absorbed in her phone while standing directly at the counter, embodies the disconnect between physical presence and psychological engagement. She's literally at the point of service—where interaction with staff and decision-making should occur—yet her attention remains fixed on her screen. The other customers in line display similar patterns of digital retreat.
The fluorescent-lit, cheerful atmosphere of the ice cream shop creates a stark contrast with the isolated, downward-gazing postures of the customers. This should be a moment of anticipation and sensory engagement—discussing flavors, observing the colorful displays, sharing the experience with friends or family. Instead, it's become another venue for parallel digital isolation.
"I Scream" works on multiple levels: it references the ice cream setting while suggesting the silent scream of missed connection and joy. These customers are literally in a place designed to make people happy, yet they've chosen to engage with distant digital content rather than embrace the immediate pleasure and social potential of the moment.
The photograph perfectly captures how thoroughly digital devices can disconnect us from life's simple pleasures and the social rituals that traditionally surrounded them.
LADIES IN WHITE
Prague 2025
"Ladies in White" is set against the magnificent baroque architecture of a city square in Prague. Two elegantly dressed women share an umbrella and physical space while being completely absorbed in separate digital worlds.
This creates a powerful visual irony. The historical architecture surrounding them represents centuries of human social interaction—public squares designed as gathering places for community, commerce, and connection. The ornate facades and classical proportions speak to civilizations built on face-to-face interaction. Yet in the foreground, these two figures demonstrate how dramatically we've altered our relationship with public space and each other.
What makes this image particularly compelling is the intimacy of their physical arrangement contrasted with their digital separation. They're close enough to share an umbrella, suggesting friendship or family bonds, yet each is absorbed in her own screen. The umbrella becomes a metaphor for the protective bubble we create around ourselves—they're sheltered together from the rain but isolated from each other by technology.
The crowd in the background, also mostly huddled under umbrellas, reinforces the theme of collective isolation. Even weather, which traditionally brings people together in shared experience, cannot compete with the pull of individual digital engagement. The rain should create moments of human connection—strangers helping strangers, shared smiles about the weather—but instead becomes another backdrop for private screen time.
"Ladies in White" emphasizes their elegance and suggests a formal occasion or tourism—yet even special moments and beautiful destinations are now mediated through devices rather than experienced directly. They're physically present in this stunning historic setting but psychologically elsewhere.
This illustrates how digital disconnection transcends cultural and geographic boundaries, becoming a universal modern phenomenon that reshapes how we inhabit even the most socially rich environments.
LEARNING YOUNG
PATH 2024
This photograph captures a particularly poignant moment: two generations absorbed in their respective screens, sharing physical space but inhabiting completely separate digital worlds. The composition brilliantly illustrates how device dependency has become normalized across all age groups.
What's most striking is the body language progression from left to right: the young girl curled inward with her device, the boy with his tablet creating a literal barrier between himself and the world, and the adult woman whose phone has become an extension of her face. Each figure demonstrates a different stage of digital retreat, yet all three exhibit the same fundamental disconnection from their immediate environment.
The subway setting amplifies the image's impact. Public transportation has traditionally been a space for people-watching, brief conversations, or simply observing the city pass by. Instead, these passengers have created private bubbles within the shared public space. The "NJ Sharing Network" advertisement in the background adds a layer of irony—promoting human connection and life-giving donation while the actual humans below remain isolated in their digital consumption.
The framing emphasizes the claustrophobic nature of this disconnection. The subway car's metal frame creates boundaries that mirror the psychological barriers each person has erected through their devices. The repetitive elements—three people, three screens, three separate worlds—create visual rhythm that reinforces the systematic nature of this behavior.
The generational aspect is particularly powerful. The young girl represents digital nativity—this is the only social reality she's ever known. The boy appears completely absorbed, his tablet serving as both entertainment and shield. The mom models the behavior the children observe and imitate, perpetuating the cycle of digital dependency.
NAUGHTY OR NICE?
NYC 2023
The juxtaposition of Santacon participants—people literally dressed to spread Christmas cheer and human connection—with the digital disconnection happening around them creates a perfect metaphor for how technology interrupts even our most cherished communal traditions.
The composition brilliantly captures this cultural collision. The man in the Santa costume stands alert and present, embodying the traditional holiday spirit of engagement and joy, while the woman also in Santa attire has retreated into her phone screen. She's physically participating in the holiday atmosphere—dressed for the event—yet psychologically absent from the communal experience unfolding around her.
The Times Square setting amplifies the irony. This is one of America's most iconic spaces for shared celebration, particularly during the holiday season, where strangers traditionally come together in collective joy and wonder. Yet she has created a private digital bubble within this most public of celebrations, choosing virtual connection over the immediate holiday magic surrounding her.
"Naughty or Nice" playfully references Santa's traditional judgment while raising deeper questions about contemporary behavior. Is it "naughty" to retreat into screens during moments
designed for human connection? Has digital engagement during communal celebrations become so normalized that we no longer recognize what we're missing?
The theatrical lighting from the marquees and holiday displays creates a warm, inviting atmosphere that contrasts sharply with the cold glow we can imagine emanating from her device. The woman on the far left, also absorbed in her phone, reinforces that this isn't isolated behavior but a pattern that's reshaping how we experience even our most treasured collective traditions.
This photograph powerfully captures how antisocialization has infiltrated our seasonal rituals—moments that were specifically designed to bring communities together in shared joy and celebration.
OBLIVIOUS
NYC 2023
"Oblivious" captures a moment of complete urban disconnection. The woman has literally stopped mid-journey on a busy city curb, anchored in place by whatever content has captured her attention on her phone screen, while holding water bottles that suggest she was in the middle of practical, real-world activities before being pulled into digital engagement.
The image emphasizes how digital devices can make us entirely unaware of our immediate environment, even in the most dynamic urban settings. She's positioned herself at the very edge of flowing pedestrian traffic, creating a small island of digital absorption while city life streams around her. Although walking through downtown Manhattan, a place rich with visual interest and cultural significance, she remains completely absorbed in her screen, missing the immediate beauty and energy of her surroundings.
What makes this image particularly striking is how it captures the automatic, unconscious nature of digital interruption. The water bottles suggest she was engaged in routine activities—perhaps exercising, shopping, or running errands—when something on her phone demanded immediate attention. This moment represents how digital engagement can hijack our daily lives, pulling us out of present-moment awareness and practical activities into virtual experiences that disconnect us from immediate reality.
"Oblivious" perfectly captures her complete unawareness—oblivious to the beautiful architecture surrounding her, to other pedestrians navigating around her stationary presence, to the simple pleasure of moving through an interesting urban environment, and to the interruption her digital engagement has created in her own daily activities. The photograph demonstrates how digital devices can render us unconscious participants in our own lives, present in body but absent in awareness.
OVERTHINKING
NYC 2025
The man's t-shirt reading "LET ME OVERTHINK THIS" becomes brilliant unintentional commentary on the very behavior he's demonstrating—sitting in a vibrant public plaza while absorbed in his phone, seemingly oblivious to both his companion and the lively social environment around them.
The image captures a scene that should epitomize leisurely social connection: two people sharing a table in a beautiful outdoor park setting, surrounded by other people enjoying the public space. The café tables, umbrellas, and relaxed atmosphere suggest this is exactly the kind of environment designed for conversation, people-watching, and shared experiences.
Instead, we see the now-familiar pattern of physical proximity without psychological presence. The man engages with his device while his companion appears equally disconnected from both the immediate environment and each other. They've chosen to sit together in this socially rich setting but have immediately retreated into separate worlds.
The slogan on his shirt becomes deeply ironic—he's literally overthinking whatever's on his screen rather than simply being present with the person across from him. The irony suggests that our devices often trap us in cycles of digital rumination that prevent us from engaging with the immediate reality that requires less thinking and more presence.
The bustling plaza setting, with its mix of outdoor dining and social activity, emphasizes what they're missing. This is exactly the kind of environment that makes urban life rewarding—the opportunity to see and be seen, to engage in casual social observation, to connect with both friends and the broader human community.
"Overthinking" perfectly captures how digital engagement can replace simple presence and connection with endless mental loops that keep us trapped inside our own heads rather than open to the world around us.
OVERTHROW BOXING
NYC 2023
Here we have a couple navigating the city together—she's walking while absorbed in her device, he's stopped and equally engaged with his screen. They're physically sharing the same urban experience, moving through the same dynamic street environment, yet they're psychologically in completely separate digital worlds. They've managed to be together while being entirely apart.
The "Overthrow Boxing Club" sign becomes deeply ironic when viewed in this context. Boxing requires intense focus on your opponent, reading their movements, responding to their
presence—the ultimate in present-moment awareness and direct engagement. Yet this couple has chosen to "fight" with their devices instead of engaging with each other or their shared urban experience.
The street's kinetic energy—cyclists blurring past, the vibrant city life flowing around them—emphasizes what they're missing. They're walking through one of the most socially rich environments possible, surrounded by urban theater and possibility, yet both have retreated into private digital bubbles that prevent them from experiencing either the city or each other.
This image perfectly captures how antisocialization has infiltrated our most intimate relationships. They've made the choice to explore the city together, to share an urban adventure, but immediately upon stepping outside they've separated into individual digital experiences. It's a heartbreaking illustration of how thoroughly digital devices can undermine even the relationships we value most, turning shared experiences into parallel acts of disconnection.
PARK BENCH CONVERSATION
NYC 2023
This photograph captures two men sharing a park bench—a classic setting for human connection and casual conversation—yet both are completely absorbed in their individual devices, creating parallel worlds of digital engagement rather than any form of actual dialogue.
The image perfectly illustrates the transformation of public spaces from venues for spontaneous human interaction into collections of individual digital consumption zones. Park benches were specifically designed to encourage rest, observation, and casual encounters between strangers or friends. Instead, this bench has become two separate offices or entertainment centers, each person creating his own private sphere within the shared public furniture.
The urban park setting, with its mix of natural landscaping and city backdrop, represents the kind of environment traditionally meant to provide respite from urban isolation and digital overwhelm. Parks offer spaces for people-watching, casual conversation, and connection with both nature and community. Yet both men have effectively privatized this communal space, using it merely as a platform for continued screen engagement.
The tangled earphone cords create visual metaphors for the complex web of digital connections that now bind us, while simultaneously preventing the simple, immediate connection that physical proximity should enable. They're close enough to easily converse, yet each has chosen to connect with distant digital networks rather than the person sitting just feet away.
"Park Bench Conversation" is brilliantly ironic—highlighting exactly what's not happening in this scene. The "conversation" is occurring between each person and their device, not between the two humans sharing the same piece of public infrastructure designed specifically to facilitate human interaction.
It captures how thoroughly antisocialization has hijacked even the most basic forms of public leisure, turning spaces explicitly designed for community and conversation into venues for continued digital isolation.
POWER LUNCH
NYC 2022
This outdoor dining scene captures the modern paradox of eating together while being utterly alone—each person at their separate table, absorbed in their individual screen worlds despite sharing the same social space.
This composition is structured to emphasize isolation within proximity. The checkered tablecloths and traditional café chairs suggest conviviality and conversation, yet every visible diner is engaged with a device rather than their meal or surroundings. The woman on the left hunches over her phone, the man works intently on his laptop, and the figure on the right also appears screen-focused. They've created individual offices within what should be a communal dining experience.
The title "Power Lunch" adds a layer of irony that deepens the image's impact. The traditional power lunch was about human connection—networking, deal-making, relationship-building over shared meals. Here, the "power" comes from digital connectivity rather than face-to-face interaction. These diners are likely more connected to distant colleagues, social media feeds, or entertainment than to the immediate environment or each other.
The architectural framing of the outdoor dining area creates visual barriers that mirror the psychological ones. The posts, awnings, and heat lamps structure the space but can't create actual human connection. The urban setting visible through the windows reinforces the theme of public isolation—surrounded by city life yet removed from it through digital mediation.
What makes this photograph particularly effective is how it captures the normalization of antisocial behavior in traditionally social settings. Dining out once required presence and engagement; now it's become another venue for digital multitasking. It asks whether we're really dining together anymore or simply occupying adjacent spaces while living separate digital lives.
ROMANTIC LUNCH
Atlantic City 2023
Set at Whitehouse Subs, a legendary American restaurant—a space traditionally associated with conversation, connection, and leisurely meals—a couple sits across from each other yet remains completely disconnected, one absorbed in his device, his partner staring off, bored.
The composition is heartbreaking in its intimacy and isolation. The booth setting suggests a deliberate choice to dine together, to share a meal and presumably each other's company. The Formica tabletop, vintage diner aesthetic, and wall of photographs celebrating past patrons and memories all speak to a place designed for human connection and social ritual. Yet the man has effectively privatized this shared space, turning the meal into an act of digital consumption.
The wall of photographs behind them adds a layer of tragic irony. These images celebrate relationships, gatherings, and moments of human connection—people who came to this very establishment to be together, to mark occasions, to create memories through shared presence. The contrast with the current scene is stark: where previous generations used dining out as an opportunity to focus on each other, the man has brought his separate digital world to the table.
"Romantic Lunch" ironically cuts deep—they've chosen to spend time together but he has immediately retreated into his individual digital bubble.
The diner booth, designed to create intimacy through its enclosed seating arrangement, instead becomes a study in parallel loneliness. They're close enough to touch yet worlds apart, sharing physical space while inhabiting completely separate psychological territories.
This photograph works powerfully as an example of how digital devices have transformed even our most intimate social rituals, turning shared meals from opportunities for connection into mere logistical gatherings where bodies occupy the same space while minds remain isolated elsewhere.
SOCIALIZING?
Hollywood, FL 2018
This photograph perfectly encapsulates the essence of the Antisocialization Project. The composition is masterfully structured—four people and an empty chair arranged in a linear sequence against a stark white building, each occupying their own chair yet existing in complete isolation from one another.
What makes this image so powerful is how it transforms what should be a communal setting into a study of disconnection. Three of the four subjects are absorbed in their devices, their body language mirroring each other in an almost choreographed display of digital retreat. The man on the far left leans back with phone raised, the second figure hunches forward over his screen, and the person on the far right mirrors this posture. Only the woman, wearing a Santa hat, breaks this pattern—she is sleeping, equally disengaged from her immediate surroundings.
The architectural backdrop serves as more than mere context—it becomes a metaphor. The repetitive window frames echo the repetitive nature of digital consumption, while the pristine white facade suggests the sterile quality of our screen-mediated interactions. The geometric precision of the building contrasts with the organic messiness of human behavior, yet both elements feel equally cold and disconnected.
The image raises uncomfortable questions about presence, attention, and what we've normalized as acceptable social behavior. It's a mirror held up to contemporary life, asking viewers to recognize themselves in these figures and perhaps reconsider their own relationship with technology in social spaces.
SOLITUDE IN THE CITY
NYC 2023
"Solitude in the City" juxtaposes physical human forms—both real and advertised—with digital disconnection, creating a complex meditation on authentic versus commodified human connection.
The young man in the foreground, absorbed in his phone despite being surrounded by imagery of human bodies and beauty, represents the paradox of contemporary urban life. He's positioned in front of a billboard featuring attractive models—commercial representations of human desirability and connection—yet he's psychologically removed from both the advertised fantasy and the immediate reality around him.
The woman in the background, also engaged with her device and wearing headphones, reinforces the theme of parallel isolation. Despite sharing the same public space, both figures have created individual bubbles of digital engagement that prevent any possibility of genuine human interaction or awareness of their surroundings.
What makes this image powerful is the contrast between the commodified human connection displayed in the advertising and the authentic human disconnection happening in front of it. The advertisements promise attraction, beauty, and implicitly, human connection, while the reality shows people choosing a digital world over direct human engagement.
The urban setting emphasizes how cities, designed to bring people together in shared spaces, have become environments for collective solitude. The architectural elements and commercial imagery create a rich visual context that frames individual isolation within broader systems of commerce and urban design.
"Solitude in the City" perfectly captures this modern condition—being alone while surrounded by both people and images of people, finding isolation within environments specifically designed to concentrate human activity and interaction. The photograph suggests that true solitude might actually be impossible in our digitally connected age, replaced instead by a more troubling form of disconnected presence.
SUICIDAL
PATH 2023
"Suicidal" presents a fascinating paradox by capturing a group that appears to embody counterculture rebellion—heavy metal aesthetics, alternative fashion, body modifications—yet has succumbed to the same digital disconnection patterns as mainstream society. The irony is particularly sharp given that the second subject's hat bears the "SUICIDAL" text, likely referencing Suicidal Tendencies, the hardcore punk/metal band.
The composition creates striking visual tension between authentic self-expression and digital retreat. The young woman on the left holds a guitar between her legs—a tool for creating music and connecting with others through art—while simultaneously being absorbed in a phone screen. This juxtaposition perfectly captures the conflict between creative engagement and passive digital consumption that characterizes so much of contemporary life.
The reference to Suicidal Tendencies adds profound layers of meaning to the image. The band emerged from the hardcore punk scene that was fundamentally built on raw energy, live performance, and intense community connection. Their music was about breaking through isolation, expressing authentic emotion, and creating bonds through shared rebellion and cathartic experience. The tragic irony is that someone wearing their merch—representing a culture specifically about breaking isolation and connecting through music—is sitting absorbed in a phone screen, disconnected from the people around them.
The subway setting reinforces how antisocialization has penetrated even the most consciously resistant communities. Public transportation has historically been a space where different subcultures encounter each other, where the diversity of urban life creates unexpected interactions and observations. Instead, this becomes another venue for parallel digital isolation, where even the most visually striking individuals retreat into private screen worlds.
"Suicidal"—directly referencing the visible text—makes it both a literal description and a metaphorical statement about what's being destroyed: the communal spirit that alternative music cultures were specifically created to foster and protect. The image suggests that digital antisocialization has become so totalizing that it can co-opt even the most consciously rebellious communities, turning symbols of connection and resistance into mere fashion statements worn while engaging in the very isolation these cultures originally fought against.
TALK TO ME
Denville, NJ 2023
"Talk to Me" captures a couple walking together through a vibrant street festival, yet both are simultaneously engaged in separate phone conversations with distant parties rather than with each other.
The composition emphasizes the tragedy of parallel isolation within physical togetherness. They've made the conscious choice to attend this community celebration together—the festival atmosphere with its "Thatcher McGhee's" pub sign and bustling crowd suggests exactly the kind of event designed for shared enjoyment and spontaneous interaction. Yet despite choosing to participate in this social experience as a couple, they've immediately retreated into separate digital conversations that prevent them from experiencing either the festival or each other's company.
The street festival setting makes their disconnection particularly poignant. They're surrounded by live music, food vendors, community energy, and all the elements that traditionally create memorable shared experiences. The festival represents everything that makes public life vibrant and socially rich, yet both have chosen to prioritize distant digital conversations over the immediate celebration happening around them and the person walking directly beside them.
"Talk to Me" becomes deeply layered—it could represent either person's unspoken wish for their partner's attention, or perhaps the festival itself asking to be experienced rather than ignored.
The profound tragedy is that they're physically present together at a celebration of community connection, but psychologically they're occupying completely separate worlds, missing both the communal joy surrounding them and the opportunity for intimate connection with each other.
The photograph demonstrates how antisocialization has infiltrated our most cherished relationships, showing a couple who made the effort to share a social outing but immediately fragmented into individual digital experiences. It reveals how digital devices can transform even deliberately chosen shared activities into parallel acts of disconnection, turning partnership itself into another venue for digital distraction that prevents the very togetherness the relationship was meant to provide.
THAT GIRL
NYC, 2023
The woman in the foreground, stylishly dressed and positioned at a busy city intersection, embodies the modern paradox of being simultaneously connected and disconnected in public space. What makes this photograph particularly compelling is how it illustrates the transformation of street corners from social spaces into individual communication hubs.
Traditionally, busy intersections were places of heightened social awareness—where people made eye contact, helped each other navigate, or simply shared the common experience of city life. Here, the subject has created a private bubble within this intensely public environment.
The image uses depth of field to emphasize isolation within community. The woman occupies the sharp foreground while other pedestrians blur into the background, mirroring how digital engagement makes us hyper-focused on our devices while everything else—including other people—becomes peripheral. The crosswalk stripes leading into the frame suggest movement
and direction, yet she remains stationary, anchored to her screen rather than participating in the urban flow.
"That Girl" as a title adds layers of meaning. It could reference the aspirational lifestyle often performed on social media—the put-together urbanite living her best digital life. But it also suggests a kind of anonymity: she's become "that girl" we all recognize, the archetypal figure absorbed in her phone while the city moves around her.
The urban canyon of buildings creates a sense of scale that makes her individual focus seem both significant and insignificant simultaneously. She's one person among millions, yet her behavior represents a collective shift in how we navigate public spaces. The "LE PAIN QUOTIDIEN" sign in the background—referencing "daily bread" or life's essentials—creates ironic commentary about what we now consider essential nourishment.
This image captures the normalized nature of digital disconnection in environments that should promote heightened social awareness and community interaction.