Hats Off

We’ve all heard of life imitating art—but what about art imiting art? Or photos imitating photos? Well, local artists Sally Egan and Amy Bystedt go the imitation-as-flattery route with a new art show at dba256 that quite unabashedly displays a bit of reverence to the trailblazers and visual pioneers  that came before them. For the “Hats Off” show, Egan and Bystedt employed a bit of makeup, some clever wardrobe choices, appropriate poses and some dynamite inspiration to emulate their heroes; a nod, or “hats off” to the people that influenced them and left an indelible mark. Talk about going way beyond standing on the shoulders of giants—it’s all about the sincerest form of flattery as the two artists capture the stark, black-and-white portraits of Diane Arbus (see Egan and Bystedt decked out in those white-collared black dresses) as well as acknowledging the glossy-paged Parisian stylisms of Guy Bourdin, the guy who put such a unique stamp on Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar. Justice is also served for Richard Avedon, another Harper’s lens-master—in fact one of Egan and Bystedt’s photos seems to riff directly off of Avedon’s In the American West photobook. See these gals mimic all their other faves, from conceptual artist John Baldessari to portrait-maven (and certified genius) Cindy Sherman. Thrill your idols.