This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, Oct. 19, 2011 - "Wonderland: A Bright and Guilty Place" at Philip Slein Gallery is an exhilarating glimpse into the fantastic worlds of Phyllis Bramson.
The nine large-scale canvases are adorned with painted figures along with sequins, embroidery, beads and vinyl flowers, creating delightfully perverse pastiches that evoke Fragonard, Japonisme, Persian miniatures and kitsch cartoons.
Bramson blends these elements beautifully into constructions that are dazzling and delicate at once, and impossible to look away from.
When: Through Oct. 29 | Where: Philip Slein Gallery, 1319 Washington Ave. | Information: 314-621-4634, www.philipsleingallery.com
Ivy Cooper is the Beacon visual arts reviewer and a professor of art at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.