Drown the Dolls Paintings
Oil, acrylic and mixed media paintings on canvas
2007 - 2011
Barbie and her reflection:
To achieve the photo studies for these paintings, I submerged a Barbie doll(s) and myself in my backyard pool and then aimed my camera upwards towards the doll and the under-side of the pool's surface. What you are seeing is both the doll and its underwater reflection, which allows a mix of both representational and abstract worlds to exist simultaneously on the canvas. The idea is to pit what is “real” vs. what is "fake" on several levels. The paint, the reflections, and the Barbie doll herself, all present a reality that is simultaneously distorted and representational. These compositions of refraction and distorted reflection mirror the way Barbie presents a distorted message to girls and women. Like the images in the painting, she is a faulty mirror, one that can grotesquely and unrecognizably distort the true feminine.
Pervasive societal ideal, indoctrinating tool, or "just a doll," Barbie, this 53 (and counting) year old icon, presents a view of women that is as relentlessly intriguing as it is unattainable.
Solo Show
Koplin Del Rio Gallery
Los Angeles, CA
2011