PASTICHE

A common treatment across the work is that of pastiche– as both stylistic imitation and composition drawing from disparate sources. The Gentleman's Parlour, for instance, borrows from certain conventions of Victorian interior design: richly patterned floral fabrics, printed flock and damask wallpapers, and an exuberant love for opulence. The colours, however, drawing from the Fauves' overpowering palette, are vibrant, high-keyed, and 'direct from the tube.' A kaleidoscopic arrangement of cadmium yellow, international orange, and shocking pink pulsates like neon lights against a rich Egyptian blue. Patterns are apposed to varied and unexpected effect. Whilst the space reaches for luxury, it is saccharine in its playful, high camp spectacle. Like the parlour, many of these pieces were intended to explore and inhabit this tension between the sumptuous and stately with the gaudy and incongruous– between what is tasteful and what is distasteful.

THE GENTLEMAN’S PARLOUR