“The psychological is a recurring theme that I come back to, and explore what it’s like to be alone, what it’s like to be together, what it’s like to be alone together.”
—Katherine Bradford, Artist
“One of the works at the Museum that I miss seeing is Katherine Bradford’s Ritual (2017). I find the way she paints human figures in vast expanses so moving. One of her favorite subjects is swimmers, and she deftly captures the grace and vulnerability of being suspended in water. In this piece, the blues of the canvas suggest to me the universe that is all around us. A group gathers to receive a transmission from the moon or another celestial body (or are they sending something up to it?). They all reach up to touch that magic in unison. Right now, we have recalibrated our physical relationships with one another. After the pandemic crisis, what will become of the casual and intimate collaborations of life that bring us close together?”
—Sara Krajewski, The Robert and Mercedes Eichholz Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art
Katherine Bradford (American, born 1942), Ritual, 2017. Acrylic on canvas. Museum Purchase: Funds provided by Victor Platt, 2018.18.1 © unknown, research required
Sara Krajewski and Katherine Bradford in conversation
Katherine Bradford joined Portland Art Museum Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art Sara Krajewski for a conversation upon the occasion of her exhibition Mother Joins the Circus at the Adams and Ollman Gallery.
