Portland’s Blue Sky Gallery presents #influenced, an exhibition by Laura Beth Reese. She writes:
#influenced (2020-present) examines the ever-changing landscape of the internet and its impact on our culture.
Using a large format camera, I photograph carefully constructed temporary installations that investigate the phenomenon that occurs at the intersection of social media, celebrity, and consumerism: the influencer.
The subjects of the photographs are celebrities and influencers—like Paris Hilton, Kim Kardashian, and Kylie Jenner—who have achieved fame by marketing and branding themselves, creating public personas designed for mass consumption. The scenes that I photograph are physical manifestations of the virtual worlds of Instagram and TikTok, built from handmade props, 2D cutouts, and mass-produced products promoted through online advertisements. I utilize the visual aesthetics of the internet and contemporary advertising to depict the frenzied online universe that invades our daily lives and shapes contemporary society.
Through #influenced, I seek to understand my own obsession with celebrity and internet culture while exploring how they not only shapes society but reflects it back to us in exaggerated, often distorted ways.
Laura Beth Reese
Laura Beth Reese : #influenced
Until April 26, 2025
Blue Sky Gallery
122 NW 8th Ave.
Portland, OR 97209
www.blueskygallery.org
