A vague and gnawing pang of anxiety centered around an IM window that has lulled.

GIF created by Mert Keskin, aka Haydiroket, exclusively for The Creators Project.

Working under the pseudonym Haydiroket, Mert Keskin is one of Tumblr’s resident GIF editors. Since being exposed to the Atari game system at the age of 5, Keskin has been drawn to the digital world much like empty stomachs are drawn to the delicious lure of pizza, and was part of some Demoscene groups in the 90s before having his talents tapped by the likes of

MTV and Tumblr. 

Keskin chose to represent his particular brand of anxiety through the psychedelic whirl of a pizza gone mad, perhaps referencing the dreaded spinny wheel of death any Mac user knows all too well. Tapping into the unnerving uneasiness felt at the other end of an IM window in respite, the pie serves as a perfect marker of a society that expects instant gratification. The desktop cycling through a maddening swirl of colors in the background only adds to the commentary of a modern people who have forgotten what patience feels (or looks) like.