Reflecting On People

Los Angeles-based artist Allie Pohl says she sees her job as a way to hold up a mirror to society. Tonight she’ll be doing just that with her new solo exhibition, Mirror, Mirror. The project is a result of months of studying online dating. From her research, which included visiting sites as well as going on actual dates, the University of Denver graduate discovered that people continually use words like “loyal,” “witty,” “worldly” and “spiritual” to describe themselves online. She began charting these key words, and ultimately translated the ones used most into her art.

“The exhibition is these words written on big mirrors, so you see yourself reflected in these words,” she says. Pohl also found — no surprise here — that people portray themselves on the websites much differently than they really are. “In this digital world, we’re able to curate our lives through Twitter, through online dating,” she says. “We pick the pictures we put up; we pick the things we’re gonna say. We create this persona of whoever we want to be.”

The exhibition will also launch Pohl’s new jewelry line, which features necklaces with the key words engraved in mirrors. Pohl says the line is a way for her to reach outside of the art world into pop culture. “The necklace is more than a pendant. It’s a catalyst for conversation,” she says. The conversation will continue with a showcase of Pohl’s “Ideal Woman” project, which she started in 2009 by appropriating Barbie and digitally enhancing her midsection into a clean, iconic image. New neon portrayals of this ideal woman shape as well as video captured from an L.A. exhibit will be on display.

Mirror, Mirror opens tonight at Plus Gallery, 2501 Larimer Street, from 6 to 9 p.m. and runs through July 10; it’s free and open to the public. For more information, call 303-296-0927 or visit www.plusgallery.com.
June 3-July 10, 2011