Deconstructing Social Anxiety: Through Gifs and the Inspiration of Artists\u27 Books

My project deconstructs social anxiety through the form of gifs. This is an important issue to address especially now, as it is one the most current stressors for my peers and myself upon returning to school after over a year in quarantine. Although not everyone has had the same experience, there is a large concern for students’ mental health and well-being post-pandemic. Learning how to re-navigate socializing after a year in isolation has been exhausting, physically and mentally, adjusting to places and new faces on campus. My work is composed of a series of three digital gifs that depict different perspectives of social anxiety and what one may feel when experiencing it. Inspired by walking throughout campus and taking notes of what I felt and thought while interacting with or observing people in social settings, my work aims to help others who may not experience social anxiety to understand a component of it, as well as help others living with anxiety know that they are not alone