Emerging artist, Caroline Q. Murphy, based in Fredericksburg, displays her vibrant paintings for the first time in Richmond.
The first thing to strike you when you see a Caroline Murphy painting Is color. Glowing, aching color that flings you out of a long grey winter. You are momentarily dazed by the rush of flavors of colors you didn’t know were there, as you steady yourself against the familiar, stable scenes. The exuberant pinks are deceptive. They aren’t the blush of a naive girl. The defiant brushstrokes evoke the putting on of dark eyeliner and music that drowns one. The shadows are just as colorful but like a bruise, you cannot touch. The artist drags you into her lush light. The seemingly accidental exuberance is the choice of a realized woman.