TWISTED VISIONS: As an art history major at Trinity College, part of my excitement in being in New York City was its constant and evolving role as a haven of creativity and art. This past Saturday, on a perfect fall stroll through Soho, I was struck by how spontaneous and thrilling the discovery of art here can be. My fellow writers and I dropped in the Matthew Draper opening at the Theodore art space on Mercer Street. The door was barely marked but inside, the cracked ceiling and walls resonated with raw character, contrasting with the geometric fluidity and depth of the charcoal drawings. Stephanie Theodore, the owner of the space, spoke with me about the artist. Matthew Draper is a graduate of the Ruskin School of Art at Oxford University and was a recipient of the St. James Fellowship as well as the Jerwood Contemporary Painters Prize. Stephanie was originally interested in his photo-realist portraits years ago, but became more excited when he started doing surreal interpretations of every day objects.The works at Theodore are charcoal sketches for these paintings. The drawings appear strikingly simple at first—the folds in a blanket draped over a drying rack, or the sketched out interior of a kitchen. I was instantly reminded of my own charcoal marks from drawing class in college. Looking closer though, the perspective is decidedly twisted—the kitchen becomes a surreal labyrinth sucking you in, the folds somehow arise a deeper fear or unease. These perverse curves did not disappear in my camera lens either, but seemed almost heightened as I zoomed in. 
For the razzler’s inaugural art post…this exhibit surprised me in awakening a deeper intrigue for objects around us and the power in looking twice at one's sketches. If anyone finds themselves catching a chill wandering Mercer Street in the next few weekends…definitely pop into Theodore, if not for the magic of this intimate, uncomplicated haven than the fact that Matthew Draper’s pieces will cause you to see your surroundings from a new point of view.
xo, MSS
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