First Love

We live in a time of unprecedented connection through technology, yet many feel increasingly isolated. First Love explores this paradox by examining the addictive nature of smartphones and how they reshape our capacity for human connection.

The boy absorbed in his smartphone reveals the deliberate design behind our devices. Platforms like Instagram and TikTok engineer addictive features through infinite scrolling, algorithmic feeds, and dopamine-driven notifications. What we're constantly seeing on these platforms—curated highlight reels, divisive content, endless comparisons—shapes our thoughts, emotions, and worldview in ways that often increase isolation and division.

This connects to the Art of Repair because smartphone addiction affects our ability to bridge divides. When devices capture our attention during formative years, young people have fewer opportunities to develop crucial skills for connection—navigating disagreement, reading emotions, building community. The content we consume shapes not just what we think, but how we relate to others.

The title "First Love" speaks to how smartphones become objects of compulsive attachment. The work opens conversation about the costs: What happens when the images and narratives we consume through addiction replace genuine connection? How do we break patterns that isolate us from each other?

By making visible what we've normalized, First Love invites us to see clearly and think differently. It creates space to imagine healthier relationships with technology—ones that support rather than replace human connection.