Review: Katy Richards, Pocket Full of Posies
Katy Richards, Leda's Eggs (Anatomical Venus), oil on panel, 36in x 60in., 2022.
Northeast Ohio painter presents work exploring themes of desire, beauty, concealment, death and temporality at Hedge Gallery in Cleveland, Ohio.
Painter Katy Richards recent work is heavily influenced by surrealism, floral textiles, Rococo ornamentation, and 17th century vanitas painting, as well as other historical artworks and objects. In their current exhibition Pocket Full of Posies, on view at Hedge Gallery in Cleveland, Ohio through May 5, 2023 Richards has shared with us paintings and works on paper from the last four years that use symbolism to explore themes of desire, beauty, concealment, death and temporality.
Richards made these paintings during “a period of anxiety and uncertainty.” Richards states “The psychological shifts brought on by the pandemic and family illness from prior years were significant in how I approached the work and my understanding of art in general. Painting became an act of preservation like the myth of the ''Corinthian Maid'' who traces her lover's shadow on the wall to preserve him. Painting preserves a moment of time. It is an attempt to makea moment permanent in an impermanent world; both a denial and an acknowledgement of our temporality.”
This exhibit is a courageous and personal sharing of an artist doing a deep dive into what makes the them tick. The paintings are full of texture, structure and gestural moments that images online or in print don’t pick up as well as seeing the work in person does. Further, the physicality of Richard’s mark helps to emote and drive home the themes of desire, beauty, concealment, death and temporality that are so much a part of the meaning behind all the work included.
Katy Richards, July Heat, Oil on Panel, 36in x 48in, 2022.
July Heat, a large oil on panel, is certainly one of the strongest works in the show. The piece features a surrealist backyard deck scene with potted plants in the background and a sculptural and somewhat twisted looking composition of body-like parts in the foreground. The body-like elements are full of movement that feel sexual, lyrical, sculptural, and frozen in the moment all at the same time.
Katy Richards, Garden Rose, Oil on Panel, 24in x 24in, 2022.
Garden Rose, is another oil on panel that features what looks to be parts of two hands intertwined. Floral elements cover parts of the hands and flow in front of and behind them too. At moments in this painting, it’s hard to tell what is part of a plant and what is part of the hand. There is also a great deal of texture and large informative brush strokes in this painting that help make it strong and also further highlight the painterly qualities that are in all of Richard’s works.
Katy Richards, Memento Mori, Oil on Panel, 18in x 24in, 2020.
Momento Mori, is a stellar oil on panel that features a still-life composition with a skinless animal head (maybe a goat or a sheep?) on a glass plate, a clear glass skull bottle, apples with one partially eaten, and an ornate mirror with the reflection of a woman in it, bookended by another bottle, this time one for wine. A floral pattern covers the background of this composition and a black and white floral tablecloth sits underneath it. This is an intense work full of symbolism and meaning. It’s also great fun to look at and explore unless skinless animals make you squeamish.
A wall featuring works on paper is one of the great surprises of this exhibit. Displayed in a “loose" grid, the pieces feature watercolor and gouache with silkscreen and collaged elements. Many of the pieces feature bright colors unique to the chosen media as well as the artists exploration into the forms and shapes of the body done in an abstracted and surrealist-like way. I found this part of the exhibit completely unexpected and delightful.
Katy Richards is a strong, thoughtful, and adroit painter and this exhibit is a wonderful example of what makes them that. It’s an exhibit that undulates, moves and surprises as you make your way around it. If you read this review in time to see it before the show closes, you won’t regret making the time.
