Allison Torneros at Face Value
It’s a little before 9PM and “Off the Wall” is blasting through the speakers. The DJ is putting the finishing touches to his Michael Jackson tribute while the crowd unsuccessfully resists the urge to “leave their 9 to 5 up on the shelf”. In the middle of it all stands artist/entrepreneur Allison Torneros, the host for tonight’s festivities, gliding from guest to guest armed with a smile and a warm hug.
“I feel like it’s my birthday!” jokes Allison.
In truth, the energy lingering in the air is reminiscent of a family reunion. The Los Angeles based Torneros, whose work has been showcased in cultural meccas such as Venice, Chicago and Atlanta, decided to return to her Bay Area roots for her first solo show, Face Value. Fitting, as the show is an exploration of self-identity, that it was held in the heart of downtown San Francisco. “There’s my high school art teacher,” points Allison to a middle-aged woman admiring the artwork along the wall. Held at the Cowboys and Angels Salon & Art Gallery, Face Value was not only her debut art showcase, but also a homecoming for the “Nickle and Dime” -bred Allison.
Art had always been a passion for Allison. While most 2 year olds were eating boogers and trying to learn simple nursery rhymes, Allison had already picked painting and drawing. When she was 11, she had already designed her first website using, like any other child of the digital age, a bootleg copy of Adobe Photoshop. She had kept up art and design through high school and college. While most starving college students slave away at minimum wage or on-campus gigs, design was Allison’s hustle.
“When senior year of college hit, there was always that question of ‘What are you going to do after?’ she explained. “I decided to start my own business because it allows so much more freedom for me.” She founded CircleDot LLC, a design company focusing on the entertainment industry which boasts URB Magazine, Nickelodeon and MTV as clients. “Entertainment industry clients want stuff colorful, they want it to pop, and I feel that’s exactly my style.”
Allison soon discovered that her style wasn’t limited exclusively to entertainment clients. Her most recent project was designing the logo for a startup Banh Mi truck on the Westside of Los Angeles called the Nom Nom Truck. “I also like working with startup businesses because you can help shape their image from the ground up. You’re consulting with them and figuring out what they’re looking for, what their target audience is, and what image they’re trying to portray,” explained Allison. “It’s kind of like making a baby, except it doesn’t take nine months and is less gross!”
“Allison, Allison, you have a purchase!” exclaims an associate of hers bringing us to speed with the events of the evening. Rather than excuse herself to get that paper, she politely asks him to check back with her in a few minutes. It was a surprising move from the business minded Allison, but you soon realize that the passion for her craft outweighs her desire for glory. “The thing I love about art is that no one has to know that I did that. I can leave it on the wall and people can come up with their own assumptions and whatever concepts they think it’s about. So I feel attached to my work, but at the same time I can be as removed as I want.”
“You can be anonymous if you want to be, like Banksy, and just let people go crazy or go wild on it. And it’s crazy cause at some shows I’ll just stand behind people and hear them talk about my work and whether it’s good or bad I hear them discussing what it’s all about. And that’s the coolest thing to me.”
With this understanding of Allison’s attitude toward her work, it’s easy to see how she came up with the idea for Face Value. Her exhibit, was inspired by Nathan Jurgensen’s commentary, “Our Digital Culture of Narcissism.” Jurgensen notes that as our lives become more viral, we “become like characters on a “reality” show always performing for the camera.” Because we use our internet profiles as a “strategic game” to help us with our jobs, friends and relationships, we, in essence, become slaves to the identity we want to convey.
“Our whole generation is the computer generation where everything’s on Myspace or Facebook.” Allison interprets. “As much as we want to act like it’s not part of our lives, we’ll go on Facebook, post status messages and we’ll put up pictures. But there’s so much more conscious thought that goes into every action than we let on. Some people take it a little far and create this image of themselves totally different from their real persona. “
“I’m not trying to make judgment because we all do the same thing. This is more of an observation,” Allison clarifies. Through her observation, it becomes apparent that our generation exists in a digital struggle between fact and fantasy. Our Internet aliases allow us to control the way the public perceives us. In her exhibit, Allison incorporates photos and text from actual Facebook, Myspace, and Twitter profile and, to strip them of their narcissist intent, blurs out their eyes to present them at face value.
“We’ll put up a picture of us partying like it’s a special moment, but everyone has had that shared experience. Once you take out their eyes, they become anonymous.”
Special thanks to Leejay Abucayan for assistance with this feature.
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Jon’s Treat of the Week
It’s been awhile, but the homie Ally Al is back with a brand new mix to close out the summer with. The England-based DJ always brings the FUNK!
“Some of the names might not immediately jump to mind when the thinking of the funk but the mix is filled to the brim with funky goodness. Giving you something to dance to.”
Digital Underground – “The Humpty Dance”
Rufus – “Rufusized”
Sweat Band – “Body Shop”
Maze – “Twilight” (feat. Frankie Beverly)
The S.O.S. Band – “High Hopes”
The Rah Band – “Messages from the Stars”
Howie B – “Switch” (Vinyl Blair Reworks 1)
The Human League – “Being Boiled”
Blackbelt Andersen – “Sandoz”
Scritti Polliti – “Absolute”
Dam Funk – “LAtrifying”
De La Soul – “Me, Myself and I”
Prince – “D.M.S.R.”
Dam Funk – “Angel Reflections” (Edit)
