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Catherine Murphy’s Latest Exhibition Explores Scale and Light

Next week, Catherine Murphy’s work will be featured at Peter Freeman, showcasing her Double Bed metaphor alongside eight new oil paintings and seven graphite drawings. The exhibition, titled “Catherine Murphy: Recent Work”, runs from March 6 to April 19 and includes pieces created within the last three years. These works delve into the complexities of scale, light, and perspective in a way that invites viewers to slow down and appreciate the intricate details—from the texture of a blanket to the sophisticated stitching of a garment.

Murphy is known for her observational painting style, though many of her scenes are constructed from her imagination. Instead of directly depicting her own bed, she created a smaller version of it in her studio for the painting Double Bed. This approach allowed her to control the environment and lighting that she sought for her artwork. However, achieving the ideal lighting conditions presented its own challenges, leading to the conception of another piece entirely.

As she recounts her artistic process, Murphy describes the struggles she faced while painting Double Bed. “When I was working, I had too much light in the room. I thought I needed to dim it down, so I pulled the shade up. Then, I found it wasn’t enough light,” she recalls, animated by the memory of her creative dilemma. She attempted to address the issue by introducing a night-light and experimenting with a towel to manage the incoming light, ultimately realizing that her efforts were not in vain. “Every time I left the room after painting Double Bed, I thought, There’s another painting here,” she explains.

This realization culminated in the creation of Needs Must, which Murphy named after a phrase her mother used frequently. The exploration of light and the reflective nature of her surroundings have proved fruitful themes in her latest works.

Catherine Murphy’s continuous investigation into the nuances of everyday life and her meticulous approach to painting reminds us of the beauty that can be found in both light and shadow.

Source
www.vogue.com