Self-portraiture in Pseudo-museums as Immersive Playscapes for Adults

Katriina Heljakka's study examines self-portraiture in "pseudo-museums," immersive selfie-oriented venues such as the Museum of Ice Cream, HAPPY PLACE, and the Museum of Selfies, as adult playscapes. Drawing on visual autoethnography of visits conducted between 2018 and 2020, the work argues that selfie-taking in these environments constitutes both solitary and social play, shaped by venue design and hosts, and that it casts the self-documenting visitor as a kind of toy or spectacle. The analysis situates these experiential businesses within a broader commercial trend, citing reported growth in U.S. experience-based ventures from roughly 130 in 2019 to between 250 and 300 in 2020.

The study's central analysis rests on roughly 535 research items gathered from four venues across San Francisco, New York, and Las Vegas. Its findings identify multisensory interiors, physically active installations, hosts, and rules of engagement, such as one-directional movement, as key design elements that shape adult photoplay. The author concludes that these spaces support both solitary and social play, with play extending into online sharing, and that adult participation reflects a homo ludens-style engagement. The author coins the term "playfies" to describe this visible form of adult play, attributing its prevalence to oculocentric, Instagrammable design and a shifting retail landscape.

The author also anticipates a shift in the field, predicting that self-portrait-centered experiences will give way to collaborative, narrative-driven immersive installations, such as Meow Wolf, that emphasize social cohesion and cognitive challenge over photo-sharing. The stated limitations are the ephemeral nature of the venues and the susceptibility of autoethnographic method to individualized, self-indulgent interpretation.