Arts: Looking at American Girls With Their American Girls

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Behold Looking at American Girls With Their American Girls By David Rosenberg Posted Friday, Jan 25, 2013, at 04:00 PM ET Ilona Szwarc's initial contact with the American Girl doll happened during a period of shooting street photography. Intrigued by the seemingly endless parade of real-life girls and their versions of a "mini-me," Szwarc approached the girls and their parents to see if she could document them. American Girl dolls have been a perennially popular toy for nearly three decades, and the franchise includes several styles of doll, flagship stores, and even a magazine. An 18-inch doll runs around $100, which doesn't include all the outfit changes and a multitude of accessories. Some of the dolls focus on American history, but Szwarc focused on the more popular "contemporary" versions. Szwarc quickly realized casual portraiture wasn't the best avenue for the project. "It didn't feel right, and I realized that going to their homes would add another dimension to the project," Szwarc explained via email. "I started posting announcements on American Girl doll fan pages and Facebook that I am looking for girls who own those dolls and would like to be photographed, and that's basically how I found most of my models." Szwarc calls the project "American Girls,"and for more than two years she has worked on it, traveling across the country and photographing roughly 100 girls. Szwarc was raised in Warsaw, Poland, but traveled frequently to the United States with her father and also to visit her brothers who were studying in Texas and Florida. She enjoyed her trips abroad and decided to spend ... To continue reading, click here. Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum What did you think of this article? POST A MESSAGE | READ MESSAGES Also In Slate Tested in Battle How Much Did the Gun Lobby Donate to Your Member of Congress? Play the Slate News Quiz	Advertisement
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