(LAMBERTVILLE, NJ) -- Artist Gwenn Seemel moved to Lambertville last spring, but she had trouble meeting people, because she wasn't on social media.
"I deleted my Instagram and Twitter accounts a while ago in order to focus on real life," said Seemel. "Socializing is often done online, and I didn't have access to the party."
Without a social media profile, Seemel ended up meeting her new neighbors the old fashioned way: making small talk while stopping to pet their dogs.
"I didn't know anyone's name at first. I identified them through their pets: Taco's owner, Marco's owner, etc. Eventually we got around to sharing human names," Seemel said.
When she invited her neighbors to take a walk or get a cup of coffee, most were receptive. Others, however, found Seemel's friend request too forward. In a world where people prefer text to phone calls--and where our social media circles are made up of faces we rarely see in person--receiving an IRL (in real life) friend request can be confronting.
"My art and my life are maybe too intertwined, but painting helps me be a better person in so many ways, so I started painting portraits of the people I was meeting. And Friend Request allowed me to show people how I see them and also thank them for welcoming me to the community."
Which would you rather see: the profile social media companies make of you by collecting details from your search habits, or a hand-made image painted by a professional artist you met while walking your dog? Chances are the latter will be more colorful and more flattering.
Friend Request, is made up of 44 paintings of the people (and their pets) who befriended Seemel. The works are viewable from the street, anytime, night or day, so there's no need to login. You can see them in Winifred Weiss' studio window (17 Church Street) in Lambertville, New Jersey. They are on view now through November 30th, any time (you can look in from the street).
There will be an opening reception on Saturday, November 5th from 1:00pm to 3:00pm.
IMAGES: (TOP) Hannah Born (BOTTOM) A corgi named Chance
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