phonograph record players, record albums and
various found objects.

The Mattress Factory Pittsburgh PA

October 27, 2001 – December 8, 2001

"Finally I got religion. I mean, I really got it....My enlightenment comes by way of art: David Pohl's Mantra dissects contemporary spirituality and puts it's innards on a platter for discussion... Pohl's interest lies in the act of ritual itself... Mantra is a study of the process by which religious traditions have been co-opted to create new ones. The act of offering a ceremonial flame to an idol has a specific historical and cultural meaning attached to it. However, this meaning has changed here as the offering, is made to no particular idol at all. And as Pohl so lucidly articulates through his work, this is the essence of our secular forays into spiritual quests. What we pray to matters little; how we do it is the entire point... Pohl doesn't merely make a point with his art; he has created an experience....
Epiphanies about spiritual life are rarely associated with art museums, but perhaps these days there's no better place for them."

Sharmila Venkatasubban