‘Wry edge’

This is the current show at the gallery of the Central Congregation Church, in Providence.

Rhode Islander Robert O.Thornton, who is 102, returned after World War II for his BFA in painting at the Rhode Island School of Design and never left. He retired from RISD in 1992 after 35 consecutive faculty shows and 37 years as RISD Museum photographer. His large canvases are unfailingly innovative and mildly controversial. His early style, formed with a wry edge and cynical opinion of the human psyche, extends otherwise familiar forms of anatomy and places to create darkly humorous compositions where the two-dimensional design overrides accurate portraiture. His later investigations capture even darker political themes or provide contrast in the softness of impressionistic Rhode Island seascapes and figure studies.

Big picture show

From 101-year-old painter Robert O. Thornton’s stunning show of mostly large canvases at the gallery of the Central Congregational Church in Providence. For many years he was the official photographer of the Museum of Art at the Rhode Island School of Design.