Behind the reproduced image lurks a determining outside to be seen and sold

Evidence

But why not do away with the idea of the mirror altogether? Why hold the phone? And here the phone is the mirror: it shows a false reflection, and, since many of these setups use a second phone on a tripod, the second phone acts as both mirror and camera, literally taking the place of the mirror that we, the viewer, assume to exist. The doubling of the phones and cameras leads to an infinite absence; while we may assume that the image we see is repeated on the screen of the phone depicted in the image itself, this is not the case. Something is there, determining the image; and this “outside” is not a space of pure virtuality or potentiality but an absent presence that signifies the design, the manufacture, the labor of influence in constructing a self to be seen and sold. — Grant Bollmer, Katherine Guinness, The Influencer Factory, 89

Categorization

• DEFINE: The absent-presence beyond the frame is the influencer’s labor occurring in production.
• XREF: Recalls Benjamin’s mechanical reproduction and aura — the produced image occludes its own production conditions.