A house where a photo of an iris sits, like a symbol of ego-deco. Instagram screenshot @/youandeyephoto
Beware of the new trend! In the latest example of the ego-deco movement, shops specializing in iris photographs are proliferating in France. When keeping your eyes peeled becomes a business.
Are we all doomed to be Narcissists, cherishing our reflection so much that we become obsessed with it? In any case, that’s the bet of these new shops mushrooming in France, where for a few dozen euros you can take a photo of your iris and then go home with an enlarged, framed version. Although the phenomenon is fairly new, the first specialty store opened in 2021 in Paris, now there are half a dozen in the capital alone. A trend that is part of the so-called ego-deco revival, a decorative movement where, as an article, world , the host chooses to stage himself to arrange his interior. The idea is that the owner asserts his style through his decor, with the confidence to gain confidence by living in a place that suits him. Even to have a work of art that will be a true mirror of the person. From now on, you can decorate your home with a large print photo of your iris. A flash in the pan or a steady trend?
French-German couple
If the diplomatic relations between France and its German neighbor fluctuate according to various events that we cannot list here, there is one business that does not suffer from considerations of this kind: the iris affair. So in 2013, two Germans came up with a concept that proved successful: photographing their own eyes. Childhood friends who were passionate about photography, they came up with the idea to open a small shop, Eyemazy, in their hometown of Dresden, and quickly bonded. After a few years and seeing the success of the project spread to big cities like Munich or Berlin, France followed in the footsteps of its neighbor and opened its first store in Lyon in 2020. It now has about sixty in its territory, almost. doubled from Germany.
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In the blink of an eye
The key to the success of iris photography shops also lies in the practicality of the approach. In fact, you should not allow more than a quarter of an hour, watch in hand. this is even the promise of certain brands that emphasize the short duration of the process between the moment you are caught. Iris in photo and the one where you come out with your prints. Well-trained salespeople sit you down in an armchair, ask you not to blink and look straight ahead. After the photo is taken, you can admire your iris, which will not be the same as your partner’s, friend’s, or anyone else’s.
Another advantage is the relatively affordable price of thirty to fifty euros per photo, which can attract all kinds of profiles: lovers, tourists, city dwellers, men, women, young and old. No longer your portrait, but your eye, the idea is simple: preserve your original memory. Some people even see in their iris a planet, fire, moon, in short, everything except the eye; an elusive dream, like a journey into an unknown world.
Retrograde
The photo of the iris, sold as decoration, as a work of art, reflects a reality that can seem cynical: like the scorn of modern art reserved for the wealthiest, it would show that it is possible to afford art at a low price. If it is not a revival of the Moscow eye, even if the gaze of a parent, husband or even one’s own eyes constantly fixed on him in his living room, like a substitute for a camera, is enough. to be intimidating. This phenomenon, in its exponential aspect, is in any case a clear proof that a person only has eyes… for himself.
Source: Le Figaro
