Portland Press Herald: Art review: Maine museums offer a survey of the state’s art history this fall

This article appears in the Portland Press Herald.

BY JORGE S. ARANGO

SEPTEMBER 4, 2022

Until Sept. 11, the Portland Museum of Art offers a thorough, nuanced view into the art of one of Maine’s most renowned contemporary painters: Katherine Bradford. The exhibition makes clear that Bradford’s wide appeal lies in the ways she elucidates the awkwardness and absurdity we experience during moments of great life transition – exemplified, of course, by her own journey from suburban housewife to single mother, painter and lesbian (not necessarily in that order). In her brightly colored canvases, figures appear clumsy and naïve (sometimes a bit too self-consciously so), but ultimately seem to find humor and humility in the stumbling, fumbling process of human development and growth.

Kathy Butterly “Crossed Arms,” 2019, Clay, glaze 6 1/4 x 6 1/4 x 6 1/4 inches, Collection of Maxine and Stuart Frankel Foundation for Art, Bloomfield Hills, MI © Kathy Butterly 2021. Image courtesy the artist and James Cohan, New York. Photo: Alan Wiener

Opening Nov. 4 (through Mar. 5) is “Kathy Butterly: Out of one, many/Headscapes.” It’s an apt follow-up to Bradford in that Butterly’s work often exemplifies our unceasing state of transformation. “Out of one, many” presents an extended riff – in porcelain – of a pint glass form. The malleability of clay is a perfect metaphor for restless changeability, and her handling of material can appear floppy, collapsed and soft, belying this artist’s rigorous process and skill. “Headscapes” are larger works, 10 of them especially made for the show, which resemble portrait busts and deal with anxieties associated with the many uncertainties and ambiguities of our contemporary world.