The series You Are Here focuses on the virtual sphere of contemporary gay cruising culture. Thanks to smartphone apps like Grindr, street grids of virtual sexuality are being created. Protected by etched glass, the profile pictures of gay online dating platforms tell a striking visual story. Blurred and alienated by the glass filter, these selfies and body close-ups offer insights into the mechanisms of a market yet create a portrait of vulnerability and self-projection.

 

This body of works also refers to a data leak by the gay dating app Grindr. The company shared sensitive user data, such as their location and HIV status, with third parties. The operators of the app have been severely criticized internationally for compromising the digital safe space they had built. In this context, Kiesenhofer's use of blurred glass surfaces to protect the profile images can be read as an allegory for data privacy.

​

2018 – 2022