Originally published on metropolis.co.jp on March 2010

Courtesy of Trevor Brown

Thanks to Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll’s Victorian fantasy is very much flavor of the month. The tale—variously interpreted as a psychedelic parable or an exploration of pubescent female sexuality—also provides the inspiration for Trevor Brown’s latest exhibition at Bunkamura Gallery, “Time for Alice,” a joint show with doll artist Yuriko Yamayoshi. Brown will exhibit around 30 canvases, most of which depart from the familiar image of a blond Alice dressed in a blue dress and white pinafore. “The first painting I did was in fact based on the classic Alice image,” Brown reports. “Once I got that token effort of pandering to expectations out of my system, I was free to break the tradition and do what I wanted.”

Bunkamura Gallery

Trevor Brown and Yuriko Yamayoshi. Time for Alice. Sculpture, drawing. Until Apr 11, free. 2-24-1 Dogenzaka, Shibuya-ku. Tel: 03-3477-9174. Open daily 10am-7:30pm. Nearest stn: Shibuya. www.bunkamura.co.jp/gallery