Virtual Beauty - Panel Discussion: Curating the Self – Technology, Beauty, and Identity in the Digital Age
In an era where digital self-curation is second nature, technology has profoundly reshaped how we understand and present ourselves.
| Dates | Thu 24 Jul 2025 |
| Times | 7–8.30pm |
| Space | Screening Room |
| Price | £10/£7.50 concessions |
This panel discussion explores the intersection of beauty, identity, and technology, focusing on how tools such as social media filters, dating apps, artificial intelligence, and biometric systems influence our perceptions of gender, race, and sexuality. With a generation growing up entirely immersed in digital life, questions arise about the evolving standards of beauty and the shifting boundaries between the real and the virtual. Drawing from themes in contemporary art and digital culture, the discussion invites critical reflection on what it means to look—and be looked at—in the post-internet age.
Speakers:
- Mathilde Friis, anthropologist and co-curator, Virtual Beauty (introduction)
- Daniella Loftus, writer, investor and founder, This Outfit Does Not Exist
- Ellen Atlanta, journalist, brand consultant and author, Pixel Flesh: Womanhood in the Digital Age
- Gonzalo Herrero Delicado, architect and co-curator, Virtual Beauty (moderator)
About the Speakers
Ellen Atlanta
Ellen Atlanta is an author, journalist, and brand consultant. She was a founding editor of Dazed Beauty, and has worked as a consultant for industry heavyweights such as BeautyCon, Estee Lauder, Milk Makeup, The Unseen Beauty and UN Women UK. Her critically acclaimed debut, Pixel Flesh: Womanhood in the Digital Age, was shortlisted for the 2024 Nero Awards, and has been described variously as “The Beauty Myth for the Instagram generation” by Kirkus in a starred review, and as “not just a book [but] an essential mirror reflecting the profound impact of beauty culture on our lives” by Pulitzer Prize finalist Chloé Cooper Jones. A Cosmopolitan book of the year, Pixel Flesh was also the recipient of the Royal Society of Literature Giles St Aubyn Award for Nonfiction. In 2024, Ellen was named on the DAZED 100 as a leading global voice in youth culture.
Dani Loftus
Dani Loftus is a founder, writer, and investor at the forefront of digital fashion. She launched the influential blog This Outfit Does Not Exist in 2021 and has since collaborated with global brands including Chanel, Google, and Puma. As founder of DRAUP, she pioneered code-based couture with renowned digital artists and led the company to win Decrypt’s Best Fashion Company Award. Her work has been exhibited globally, and was the first creator to sell a digital fashion piece at Christie’s. Dani is a founding member of RED DAO, which manages over $6M in digital fashion assets, and a curator at Unicorn DAO, supporting women-identified and LGBTQ+ artists. Her thought leadership has been featured in Vogue, Bloomberg, CNBC, and as a speaker she has participated at major events such as WWD Tech Symposium, Christie’s Art and Tech Summit and CogX.
Mathilde Friis
Mathilde Friis is a visual anthropologist, curator and a PhD candidate in Visual and Material Culture at Northumbria University in Newcastle. Her research and work explore issues around sexuality, feminism and gender in curatorial practices. Her recent curatorial projects include the group exhibitions Virtual Beauty (HEK, 2024, Somerset House, 2025), Purity & Danger (Guts Projects, 2024) and Working Girls! (Gallery 46, 2024), which explored the intersections of art, sex work, labour, and the market. As part of Working Girls!, Mathilde also curated a public programme held at Gallery 46 and the ICA. Previously, Mathilde worked at Gagosian, London, coordinating large-scale art installations. She holds an MA in Social Anthropology from the University of Edinburgh and an MA in Arts & Cultural Management from King’s College London.
Gonzalo Herrero Delicado
Gonzalo Herrero Delicado is an architect, curator and a lecturer at Central Saint Martins and the Royal College of Art in London. His curatorial work explores the impact of the climate crisis and digital technologies on the world around us through design, architecture, and art practices. Among his most recent exhibitions include Virtual Beauty (HEK, 2024, Somerset House, 2025) and After the Technological Sublime (Art Dubai, 2025) where he was curator for the Digital section and 2025 Digital Summit. Previously, he held various curatorial positions at Serpentine, Royal Academy of Arts and the Design Museum. His curatorial portfolio includes projects for Barbican, Tate, Design Council, Mies van der Rohe Foundation and the Museum of the Future in Dubai.
Header image: Angelfire, XENA (2021). Courtesy of the artist