Sadbh Maher

My research project explores the variety of ways in which food has emerged as a visual and sensory language through which haute couture brands like LOEWE and online creators including Nara Smith negotiate contemporary Western ideals of distinction and self-optimisation culture. Drawing on the thinking of Pierre Bourdieu and Jean Baudrillard, my project examines how food imagery circulates online within forms of “hyperreality,” where food is staged, mediated and experienced virtually. In an increasingly digital world, sensory marketing and simulated consumption are used to bridge the gap between visual culture and embodied experience, evoking a sense of indulgence and taste without physical consumption. This reflects how post COVID-19, online environments rely on mediated sensory cues to reproduce physical satisfaction. Ultimately my research analyses how food imagery produces and disseminates desire and aspirational lifestyle narratives online.

My research explores the intersections between digital culture, fashion and contemporary art. Following graduation, I aspire to pursue a career in writing and journalism within the culture sector, further developing my practice through critical engagement with the ways art, media and fashion shape contemporary society and its values.