ESSAYS > REVIEW: BACK AND FORTH BY ANDREW FISH
By Andrew Fish
https://artspiel.org/
I have been a friend and follower of Catherine Kehoe’s work since moving to Boston nearly 20 years ago. Her unmatched command of color, light, and shadow has solidified her as one of the most influential artists in the region. Kehoe also works on an unconventional scale that many painters either avoid or find daunting: small. It brings to mind a quote by Prince: “I may be small, but so is dynamite!”—and her paintings embody just that. In her latest exhibition at Anderson Yezerski Gallery, Kehoe draws from art history to reimagine classic motifs and compositions. The show’s title, “Back and Forth,” speaks to the passage of time.
Her contemporary pieces engage in a dialogue with the past, blending historical references with a modern sensibility. Kehoe’s signature geometry and precision of line generate a palpable tension on the canvas, while her brushwork is exquisite and seemingly effortless. This new collection features a more subdued color palette, akin to her Direct Descent series, though certain pieces dazzle the viewer with sudden bursts of vibrant, high-key pigment. The overall effect is one of profound reverence—for the subjects she draws from history, for the intimacy of her chosen scale, and for the very act of painting itself.
