CHICAGO — Step into Nicola Florimbi’s world at Corbett vs. Dempsey, where acrylic paintings defy time with their engaging clash of realism and abstraction. In her debut exhibition, “Rooms,” the artist crafts a paradox that invites you to explore environments filled with both nostalgia and contemporary relevance.
The ten canvases depict interactions across brilliantly layered spaces. Each setting, a tapestry of light and shadow, unfolds like a theatrical stage where every object and gesture weaves into a silent narrative. Despite their complexity, Florimbi’s paintings breathe without irony, a quality that pulls you into their vibrant stories.
Her works evoke a rich visual dialogue that remains tantalizingly unresolved, reminiscent of the depth found in Diego Velázquez’s iconic “Las Meninas.” Florimbi’s ambition embraces the mysterious, creating spaces teeming with connections akin to those in Agatha Christi’s mysteries, though they offer no clear resolutions.
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A Dance of Presence and Perspective
Florimbi aligns herself with the interior dramas of masters like Balthus and Paula Rego, using figures who often avoid direct eye contact, creating tension and intrigue. Her scenes feel unsettling yet necessary, with a distinct beauty in their ambiguity. The characters — men, women, boys, and girls — exist in a perpetual rhythm of connection and disconnection.
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“Stephen and Bobby Go Frog Hunting” exemplifies this dynamic. Against a backdrop of urban rooftops, the painting features a child ambiguously gendered, triumphantly raising a frog from a bucket while a mother and nearby figures populate the vivid scene. This tableau, charged with layers of narrative, keeps viewers questioning what story truly unfolds.
The beauty of Florimbi’s work lies in its calculated artistry. Each composition delicately balances the real and surreal, leaving narrative threads deliberately untied. The more you engage, the more these pieces reveal, offering glimpses of an iceberg-like depth lurking below the visible surface.
Nicola Florimbi: Rooms continues at Corbett vs. Dempsey (2156 West Fulton Street, Chicago, Illinois) through June 13. Assembled by the gallery, this exhibition challenges you to pause and ponder amidst scenes as familiar as they are fantastical.
Source: hyperallergic.com