Orkideh Torabi’s solo show at Asya Geisberg Gallery is titled ‘Kings and Conquerors,’ but might more accurately swap ‘kings’ for ‘queens’ as the female protagonists of her vividly colored paintings take charge in the world and in their relationships with men. At the gallery entrance, a confident woman in shades and cowboy boots drives straight towards us on her motorbike, a diminutive, worried-looking man on board behind her. In other works, groups of men cheat at cards or gab loudly over beer. When women appear in the paintings, however, they control the situation, as in this humorous recasting of the typically male magician and his female assistant. (On view in Tribeca through May 16th).
