The traditional iconography of the American Dream—vast landscapes, the promise of settlement, and the pursuit of boundless opportunity—is undergoing a radical, digital reinterpretation. In a provocative new exhibition at the Perrotin gallery, artist Nick Doyle is challenging the stability of these national myths, suggesting that the frontier has shifted from the physical expanse of the West to the ephemeral corridors of artificial intelligence.
The exhibition, titled “Collective Hallucinations,” presents a visual landscape that is as much a psychological study as We see a spatial one. By blending physical media, such as meticulously crafted denim collages, with interactive AI technology, Doyle explores the tension between the natural world and the encroaching digital era. His work suggests that the modern American experience is increasingly defined by a “colonization of the brain,” where identity and memory are shaped by algorithmic mirages rather than lived experience.
The Digital Mirage: Perrotin’s “Collective Hallucinations”
At the heart of the exhibition is a transformed gallery space that evokes a sense of desolation. The upper floor of Perrotin has been reimagined as a staged environment, a “visual hallucination” where overproportioned objects—reminiscent of a road trip through a magnifying lens—populate a landscape of cacti and architectural remnants. This spatial arrangement is designed to evoke the tension between the Anthropocene and natural space, pointing to both ecological decay and psychological fragmentation.
Doyle, who grew up in Southern California, draws heavily from the classic American landscape. His work reflects on the idea of America as a “strange dream,” a concept he describes as inherently delusional and experimental. This sense of escape, he notes, is central to the American identity, often bordering on self-destruction. The exhibition captures this through a “counter-iconography of desolation,” where the symbols of prosperity have curdled into a sense of collective disillusionment.
The artist’s approach treats each piece as an ephemeral presence, akin to a movie set. This cinematic quality is a nod to his upbringing in Los Angeles, where the “magic” of Hollywood worlds often leaves behind empty sceneries once the production concludes. In the contemporary era, Doyle argues, this sense of wonder is being lost to the immediacy of digital media, where everything is experienced through a screen before it can truly be felt.
From Land to Logic: The New American Frontier
A significant theme running through the exhibition is the evolution of the American frontier. Historically, the promise of the West was tied to the acquisition of territory and the exploitation of natural resources. Doyle reinterprets this visual mythology by referencing the works of American photography pioneer Ansel Adams. However, where Adams sought to capture the sublime beauty of the wilderness, Doyle uses these references to highlight a “colonial gaze” that underpinned American expansionism.
In Doyle’s vision, the landscape is no longer a wild expanse but a series of façades subject to the constraints of capitalist possession. This theme is literalized in the piece Black Market Bodies (2026), a suitcase containing gardening tools and cacti. The installation is inspired by the global black market trade in rare cacti, where specimens are harvested from their indigenous North American habitats and smuggled across borders. This act of containment and domestication serves as a metaphor for how American culture itself is consumed, exported, and eventually hollowed out.
The Symbolism of Denim and Labor
Doyle’s choice of medium is deeply intentional. His blue-toned, wall-mounted collages—part of a series he refers to as “Plastic Eden”—are constructed from meticulously assembled pieces of denim. This process, which functions like a form of modern marquetry, serves several symbolic purposes:
- American Iconography: Denim is inextricably linked to Western male ideals and American masculinity.
- Capitalist Roots: The material carries a heavy historical weight, tied to the systems of labor and exploitation that built the nation.
- The Legacy of Imperialism: Doyle points to the historical connection between indigo and cotton—the primary cash crops of the era—and the systems of slavery that facilitated their production.
By using denim to create “ghostly” and “liminal” compositions, Doyle forces a confrontation between the aesthetic beauty of the work and the violent histories embedded in the fabric itself. The resulting collages act as reminiscences of a bygone era of craftsmanship, even as they address the modern reality of digital ephemera.
Mirror, Mirror: The Rise of the AI Oracle
The centerpiece of the installation is a groundbreaking experiment in artificial intelligence titled “Mirror, Mirror.” This interactive installation features an AI avatar named Ava, who serves as both a central figure and a contemporary “oracle” for the viewer. Appearing on a vertical screen within a structure resembling a low-rent American strip mall, Ava is designed to respond to existential questions in real time.
The character of Ava is built upon a specific American archetype: a persuasive, confident, and culturally polished figure. Doyle has developed her ability to mimic American charisma, allowing her to engage viewers with a cadence and rhythm that feels both familiar and uncanny. The installation is housed under a sign advertising “Psychic Readings $10 Special,” a satirical nod to the commercialization of spirituality and the search for meaning in a fragmented society.
The title, “Mirror, Mirror,” refers to a psychological phenomenon: the growing emotional dependence on AI as a tool for self-projection. As users interact with these systems, they often seek identity confirmation and emotional comfort. However, Doyle suggests that this relationship is fundamentally one-sided. AI offers a “complacent, accommodating relationship” that removes the necessary emotional friction required for genuine human growth and engagement with a truly different mind.
The Concept of Prosthetic Memory
Doyle’s work with Ava pushes the concept of “prosthetic memory” to a new level. This term describes the inheritance of memory through media and collective imagery rather than direct experience. In the United States, where technological media have long been used to construct national identity and history, the rise of AI threatens to make truth itself unstable.
“It shapes perception,” Doyle observes, noting that as people increasingly rely on these systems for psychological and emotional support, the line between reality and simulation blurs. The AI does not possess lived experience, yet it can replicate emotional patterns and develop a form of awareness that mimics a developing teenager. This creates a space where the “colonization of the brain” becomes a reality, as digital systems begin to dictate how we remember and perceive our own lives.
Conclusion: A Landscape of Disillusionment
Nick Doyle’s “Collective Hallucinations” does not offer a singular conclusion. Instead, it presents a participatory environment that prompts fascination, discomfort, and humor. By linking the California Gold Rush and the Cold War Space Race to the modern Silicon Valley technocratic obsession, Doyle illustrates a continuous narrative of American expansion—one that has moved from the conquest of land to the occupation of mental and digital space.
As the world moves further into an era of digital ephemera, Doyle’s work serves as a critical lens through which to examine the enduring structures of belief, memory, and the shifting definition of the American Dream. Whether through the tactile history of denim or the uncanny intelligence of an AI oracle, the exhibition demands that we look closely at the mirages we have created.
The Perrotin exhibition “Collective Hallucinations” is currently ongoing. For updates on upcoming gallery schedules and artist statements, please monitor official Perrotin announcements.
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