P·P·O·W is pleased to present Staircase to the Rose Window, Chiffon Thomas’ first solo exhibition with the gallery. Synthesizing embroidery, collage, drawing, and sculpture, Thomas’ practice contends with the crafted body to examine wider issues of gender, race, sexuality and institutional power. Forcefully eschewing easy classification, Thomas’ “impossible bodies” embrace the space between figuration and abstraction. With an intuitive application of utilitarian and industrial materials, Thomas creates a visual language for translating both cultural narratives and personal experiences which push toward tangible forms of healing. Inspired by science fiction authors such as Octavia Butler, childhood memories, and his own physical experience of transformation, Thomas’ Staircase to the Rose Window transports the viewer to a dystopian world that allegorizes the quest for satisfaction in the face of persistent longing.

Born in Chicago, IL, Chiffon Thomas (b. 1991) holds an MFA from Yale University and a BFA from The School of The Art Institute of Chicago. Thomas has been included in exhibitions at the Institute of Contemporary Art, Miami, FL; Sculpture Center, Long Island City, NY; P·P·O·W, New York, NY; Kohn Gallery, Los Angeles, CA; Kavi Gupta, Chicago, IL; Galerie Perrotin, Tokyo, Japan; and the Currier Museum of Art, Manchester, NH, among others. Thomas has completed prominent residencies with the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, Skowhegan, ME and the Fountainhead Residency, Miami, FL. His work is in the permanent collections of the Hammer Museum, Los Angeles, CA; Institute of Contemporary Art, Miami, FL; Pérez Art Museum, Miami, FL; X Museum, Beijing, China; Norton Museum of Art, West Palm Beach, FL; and the Currier Museum of Art, Manchester, NH; among others. In September 2023, Thomas will present his first solo museum exhibition at the Aldrich Museum of Contemporary Art, Ridgefield, CT.

[1] Yerebakan, Osman Can, Cracks are like veins, rust, like paint, P·P·O·W, 2022.