CANNES, France—Thanks to its photo filters, Instagram is known for empowering the common social-media user with a touch of artistry. But the mobile-social platform recently challenged users to show off their discriminating tastes with real attempts at art, asking them to remake iconic photos and post their interpretations with the hashtag #recreatedclassic.
The competition culminated at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, where more than 500 entries were displayed, and Instagram reps named three winners at a pop-up gallery at the Hotel Majestic Barrièrre. Instagram and parent company Facebook have taken over parts of the historic hotel as its base of operations for the festival, meeting with creatives, agencies and brands to show off their latest ad capabilities.
The #recreatedclassic contest was sponsored by Leica, and the winners got limited-edition cameras.
The triumphant Instagram re-creations evoked memorable moments from history, as seen below:
1. Caio Vita (@caiovita) offered a modern-tech reimagination of John Lennon and Yoko Ono's nude embrace for a 1970s Rolling Stone cover.
2. Rajesh Ramakrishnan (@rajesh_photo) provided a playful but powerful take on the unforgettable 1960s flower-power photo of a protester and a policeman.
3. P.J. Ortiz Luis (@pacificyo) won with a remake of Toni Frissell's somber classic Lady in the Water, 1947.
