How many versions of yourself can coexist at once? I like to think of it as a math problem: Number of people I’ve encountered x the number of moments I’ve lived = the number of versions of me that exist. So in my very sophisticated calculation, there are infinite yous out there, infinite pathways for infinite selves to live infinitely variable lives. Who would I be if I wasn’t this version of myself? That question might be as difficult as looking in the mirror and imagining you don’t know the face looking back at you. Maybe that’s why each of the girls in these photos, taken in Los Angeles, paused to stare dreamily into the distance when I asked who their alter ego would be, if they had one. With so many selves to choose from, how do you settle on just one? —Rose Lichter-Marck
8 Comments
Love this question! Interesting that a lot of people are using “alter ego” to describe who they ARE rather than who they are NOT (like how Steve Urkel summons an alter ego that is essentially his antithesis: ). I wonder if the term is getting conflated with the concept of a “spirit animal” (which we know better than to say at this point because it is culturally appropriative)
i love this. i’d probably be a donkey bc they loud and annoying but cute and they love to have their heads rubbed.
It’s somewhat disappointing that we’ll never be able to experience being even two of the infinite versions of ourselves. I love this question and the fact that you photographed and asked real strangers, like Humans of New York.
-M
I think who you think your alterego is says a lot about who you are.
Lola is my alter ego. Lola, is a lot of things I often wish I was. She’s smarter, bolder, and more self-confidant than I am, and she always seems to get the guy. but like anyone, she has her faults, her ‘f it’ attitude often gets her in trouble, and because she can never turn down a dare, she gets her heart broken more often than not. She’s a southern sweetheart from Texas, and her greatest dream is never to end up like her mother.
beautiful portraits
Loove these….
I think that my alter ego would be the version of Batgirl who takes selfies in her bat-suit because it’s my ultimate dream to be my town’s glamorous vigilante!
The first person that comes to mind is someone who exists in real life, my sister. Then I thought of some of my closest friends and even a few not as close friends…is it weird to think of people we’re close to as our alter egos? Meh, whatevs. :)