An intriguing array of black and white and color photos line the walls at Pearl's Dive, all created by UNM student Anny Gilbert.
July 1 kicked off the month-long exhibit titled "AlleyStars." Adding to the charm of the 15 photographs, Albuquerque's Unit 7 Drain entertained the crowd that filled Pearl's Dive with an acoustic set.
Fittingly, besides a few untitled pieces, every photo's name ends with "star." The photos portrayed women and dealt with human form and artistic portraiture. The major theme Gilbert reveals is accessible beauty, which she draws from her models.
"I didn't want the pictures to look super glamorous," Gilbert said. "I like to take models and accentuate their inner beauty and uniqueness."
The color photos, all subjects of rock and roll songs, are stunning and radiant. One of the most captivating and disturbing color photos is "Nautical Star," a woman who is also the subject of "Strange Little Girls" by Tori Amos.
The woman's eye is eerily enlarged by a magnifying glass and this leaves the image resonating. "Dancing Star" displays two photos in one frame, and is a modern day depiction of "Tiny Dancer" by Elton John. The image is heaven for exhibitionists - it feels as if the viewer is peaking in and seeing something they shouldn't be.
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"Twinkle Star" depicts "Roxanne" by Sting as a woman dressed as a hooker. The images are stirring, but without being named after the songs they depict, it is impossible to know what musical works they are about.
In another series of three black and white photos, all taken in a UNM photo class, Gilbert shows the vulnerability of three different women dressed in their lingerie.
Gilbert began this body of work in 1997 and each of the 15 pieces are from her photo career at UNM. This was her first exhibit off campus.
"I was really nervous," Gilbert said. "I made a big deal about it because I had never shown my work in public before."
As for why the show is titled "AlleyStars," Gilbert thought of it while walking in an alley at a bar downtown. She noticed one star in the sky.
"It's kind of a parody to me - something really pretty over something that's not," Gilbert said.
She believes that this is a perfect description of her work.
Gilbert's rapport with the camera and her subjects has really allowed her to tell the story of these "stars." Although her talent with the camera is great, Gilbert is a communications and journalism major, a theater minor and considers photography a hobby.
The photos in "AlleyStars" are for sale and will hang at Pearl's Dive at 509 Central Ave., until July 31.
