The textiles and decorative motifs that appear in this British painter’s colorful, often clamorously beautiful depictions of interiors are drawn from a multitude of cultural traditions. But although these design elements evoke far-flung origins—and the colonial histories that attend them—Thorpe seems most concerned with the cumulative power of ornament to conjure a syncretic, escapist reality. The most compelling canvases in his U.S. solo début are founded on the simple drama of a room’s corner, where a vibrant Persian rug might collide with walls papered in chinoiserie patterns. Arcade-style video games, bearing intricate botanical designs, appear in some pieces, as if to suggest surreal portals to fantasy worlds. The scenes are untroubled by human beings, but such titles as “The Dream Is the Small Hidden Door in the Deepest and Most Intimate Sanctum of the Soul” hint that the artist’s interest in psychic space might be even greater even than his eye for décor. (Denny Dimin; March 5-April 14.)
Published in the print edition of the March 28, 2022, issue.
