Here I have created a virtual gif exhibiton which contains 4 gifs I have made in the 3D modeling software blender in the vaporwave aesthetic. Next to each of the gifs will be a description about the history of that item in the vaporwave subculture. On other pages there will be a process of the creation of a gif from the modeling, texturing, animating and finally process of turning that animation into a gif, ready to display on this webpage. Additionally, another page will be hyperlinked which focusses further on the history and theory behind vaporwave, from its conception to its popularisation in the 2010s as a nostalgic take on 1990s.
The term 'Vaporwave' originated around the early 2010s as a music genre that parodied
'chillwave' music, often characterised by retro pop culture from the 80s to 90s. Vaporwave music
drew from the childhood of those who made music that heavily engaged in the nostalgia of the
listener, whether they were or weren't engaged in the culture of the time. Vaporwave music
is built on the foundation of synthesised loops contructed to feel as nostalgic as possible.
Although vaporwave originally began as a music genre that didn't stop it from evolving to an
aesthetic. The vaporwave aesthetic was popularised on websites such as tumblr where users
would post art featuring washed out pastel colours with 80s aesthetics such as sunsets with
palm trees and muscle cars.
Vaporwave artwork could be described as a critque of capitalism or even a surrender to it,
as said by Charlie Jones (2012). Vaporwave content can be described as "a wave of content
ambiguously celebrating a dystiopian capitalism". Vaporwave artists' options on whether
the aesthetic is anti or pro-capitalism can be interpreted differently by each artist
but broadly the washed out neon colours of the 1980s and fixation on products such as
fiji water that are needlessly expensive clearly comment on capitalism, to imagine a
future of commercialisation.
The Vaporwave aesthetic plays perfectly into that nostalgic feeling you get when you
remember something that existed from your childhood, but how does something so dystopian
manage to bring out these emotions for a time that didn't really truly exist. While
originally using 80s pop culture such as the palm trees of miami and the disco scene, the
aesthetic evolved upon being adopted by younger generations who's nostagia mostly revolved
around early 3D video games of the late 90s and early 2000s such as Crash Bandicoot and
The Legend of Zelda.