Insta Aesthetic is a Gatsby minimal starter customized into a data-visualization project that analyzes Instagram augmented-reality filter aesthetics and their impact on self-image.
What is Insta Aesthetic?
Insta Aesthetic is a Gatsby-based website starter built on the official Gatsby minimal starter. It takes Instagram filtered images as its subject matter and produces a data-visualization site that explores how augmented-reality filters shape beauty standards. The project runs on Gatsby, a React-based static site framework, and is designed to be edited directly in the source code. The original starter is published by Gatsby Inc. and distributed via the Gatsby CLI and GitHub.
Key Features
- Gatsby minimal starter base — An official Gatsby starter with minimal configuration, using React components and a simple
src/pagesstructure. - Local development workflow — Run
npm run developto launch a development server at http://localhost:8000 with real-time updates on edits. - One-click Gatsby Cloud deployment — A "Deploy to Gatsby Cloud" button deploys the starter directly to Gatsby Cloud.
- Customizable home page — Edit
src/pages/index.jsto change the content of the site's landing page. - Data visualization focus — The project analyzes Instagram filter aesthetics and self-image, using data visualization to present its findings.
- Documentation and resources — Includes direct links to Gatsby documentation, tutorials, guides, API reference, plugin library, and cheat sheet.
Who is it for?
- Social media researchers — study how Instagram filters influence perceptions of beauty by visualizing patterns in filtered images.
- Data journalists — present data-driven stories about augmented-reality aesthetics and self-image.
- Gatsby developers — use the minimal starter as a clean base to build a portfolio or project site with data visualization.
What can you do with Insta Aesthetic?
- Researchers: explore the relationship between Instagram filters and self-image through interactive charts and visualizations.
- Gatsby beginners: learn the basics of Gatsby by customizing a simple starter with live reload and deploy to Gatsby Cloud.
- Data visualization designers: create a public-facing site that communicates findings about filter aesthetics and beauty standards.
How does Insta Aesthetic work?
Based on the starter README: create a new site with npm init gatsby, navigate into the directory, run npm run develop to start the local server, and edit src/pages/index.js to see updates in real time. Deployment is supported via one click on Gatsby Cloud or through the Gatsby CLI.
